Kristian

"Kari gave birth to Kristian on February 9, 1983. In many ways, Kari and Kjell Inge each had their firstborn. Back home in Seattle, there was baby crying, while Kjell Inge was so desperate that he could have cried his bitter tears out at sea. He quickly realized that he had bought a pig in a poke. The vessel might have looked good on the drawing board, but when faced with reality at sea off Alaska, 69 feet was just too small. The boat was simply too small to fish effectively for cod. Røkke worked around the clock, but the effort did not pay off – it was impossible to make money from the boat. But he had only himself to thank. Not only was the boat a hopeless little tub, but the demanding, young shipowner had indeed loaded it with extra equipment at the end of the building period. Now he experienced that the things that were good to have were difficult to pay back."

"However, Røkke refused to appear as a loser. It was all about saving everything that could be saved from the creditors' claws. Together with his auditor, Pierre Rajotte, and lawyer Rex Stratton, he concocted a plan to dodge the guarantee to the bank and the shipyard. The means was to create a foundation for his son Kristian. Here, the father could transfer assets and shares, hoping they would then be safe from the creditors' long arms. Such a plan meant that Kjell Inge Røkke did not intend to settle his debts – the creditors were to be misled."