CCTV footage from a roadhouse in the outback has has shown the British backpacker held hostage for two months only moments before her rescue.
The 22-year-old woman is shown in the footage appearing to be in a visible state of distress as she talks to Beverley Page, the manager of the roadhouse in Mitchell.
“She was very frightened, she was upset and shaking,” Page said. “You could see two black eyes and marks on the side of her throat… she seemed too upset to be simply upset about not being able to pay for fuel.”
After she left the shop, police pulled over the vehicle on the nearby Warrego Highway, where her alleged captor and rapist was discovered hiding in the back of the car.
CCTV of the British backpacker who was rescued from a hostage situation in outback Queensland. https://t.co/VnnMI2eRGT #7News pic.twitter.com/3WXRNaTlqn
— 7 News Sydney (@7NewsSydney) March 7, 2017
Police will allege that the woman was beaten and continuously raped between February 3 to March 5, most of which occurred on a on a road trip from Cairns to Mitchell, a distance of around 1400km.
The accused, who is a 22-year-old man from the Cairns suburb of Manunda, is facing more than 20 charges. They include four counts of rape, eight counts of assault, four of strangulation, two of deprivation of liberty, and one charge of obstructing police.
Detective Inspector Paul Hart said the traffic stop “potentially saved this young girl’s life”.
Source: 9 News.
Photo:
