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Backpacker Kidnapped, Raped For Months In Queensland Horror

Woman allegedly held hostage for months by 22-year-old man.

A 22-year-old British backpacker was kidnapped, held hostage for months and raped repeatedly by a young man in Queensland according to police.

A man, 22, from Manunda, near Cairns, has been charged with multiple offences including rape and deprivation of liberty after a traffic stop on the Warrego Highway on Sunday.

Police stopped a four wheel drive in what they call a "routine job" after the driver was unable to pay for petrol, before finding a woman with injuries behind the wheel. A further search of the vehicle located a man hiding in the rear.

"Around 5pm [Sunday], during an intercept of a vehicle on the Warrego Highway, Mitchell, police noticed the 22-year-old woman driving the vehicle was visibly distressed and had injuries to her face," Queensland police said in a media release.

Officers say they found a 22-year-old man hiding inside the rear of the vehicle underneath clothing.

"The pair allegedly met three months previously and the alleged offences occurred between January 2 and March 5 at various Queensland locations," police said.

The Courier Mail reported the pair met in North Queensland and started a relationship, but the woman had been held against her will for the last fortnight.

The man was charged with charged with four counts of rape, eight counts of assault occasioning bodily harm, four counts of strangulation, two counts of wilful damage, two counts of deprivation of liberty, one count of possess dangerous drugs, one count of possess drug utensils and one count of obstruct police.

The victim, a British backpacker, was found suffering facial fractures, bruising and cuts.

The man was remanded in custody and will reappear in court at a later date.

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