FOUR Larnaca men are being held in police custody in connection with the abduction and suspected gang rape of an 18-year-old Finnish tourist in Ayia Napa.
The men, aged between 18 and 24, were arrested after the woman’s Swedish boyfriend told police that four men in a pick-up had forced the woman into their car.
It was around 2am on Sunday when the Swede rushed to Ayia Napa police station and told police that four men had grabbed his girlfriend while they were walking near the holiday resort’s fishing port.
The man said he tried to help her, but was assaulted by the suspects.
He said the pick-up’s licence plate had been covered with mud but he managed to get the three last digits.
The four men were spotted by police outside a nightclub together with the tourist at around 3.30am.
When they saw the police, the four men fled, only to be intercepted a little later.
Arresting officers confirmed the suspects’ licence plates were indeed covered with mud.
When questioned, the men allegedly admitted to forcing the woman into their pick up and driving her to a deserted area near the Liopetri river, where they all had sex with her.
Police said the suspects had claimed the woman had been a willing partner in the sexual acts.
The woman, however, claimed she had been forcefully dragged into the pick-up and seated in the back between two of the suspects.
She alleged that she was led to a deserted area where she was gang raped.
The men were led to court on Sunday, and were remanded in custody for seven days.
Blood and DNA samples were collected from the suspects and their alleged victim, and the findings will be handed to police in the next few days.
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