Five migrants have been accused of abducting a tourist and gang-raping her for 72 hours in Rome.
The 32-year-old woman from Colombia had arrived in the Italian capital on May 9 before going for dinner alone near its Temini Station.
She was approached by a man who convinced her to follow him so he could sell hashish, a cannabis concentrate product.
After walking for around half an hour, she reached a van where she was then allegedly abducted.
She was brought to an abandoned building on the eastern outskirts of the capital.
At least 22 illegal migrants occupied the building - five of whom drugged her and threatened to kill her.
She was allegedly gang-raped several times by the five during the 72 hours she was held in the building on Via Cesare Tallone, in Tor Cervara.
The suspects also robbed her of her mobile phone and wallet, with the woman found half-naked as she escaped.
Italian police found 22 illegal migrants as they raided the abandoned building
|POLIZIA DI STATO
An Italian man found the woman, bringing her to nearby Casilino hospital, where she received specialist care for women who are victims of violence.
Tests showed clear signs of violence and an "altered state" attributable to being drugged.
Investigators from Italy's Flying Squad Section IV launched an urgent investigation which led to an organised raid on the building.
Police from the Presnestino district, Forensic Police, and Police Headquarters' Immigration Office participated in the raid to arrest the migrants, all of whom were originally from Africa.
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Police found a bed inside the building where the tourist was taken
|POLIZIA DI STATO
The five men arrested were:
- Saidykhan Lamin, 29, and Karamba Kanteh, 38, from Gambia;
- Harouna Traore, a 43-year-old Malian;
- Isibor Wisdom, 29, and Paul Nwabueze, 39, from Nigeria.
They have been charged with gang rape, aggravated by taking advantage of the victim's defencelessness.
The men were placed under police custody until their identities could be confirmed.
In addition to the five migrants arrested, the Flying Squad are investigating the responsibilities of three other individuals, including the man who lured her from the restaurant, the person who drove her to the building, and the owner of the abandoned structure.
An abandoned building on Via Cesare Tallone, in Tor Cervara, near where the woman was found
|GOOGLE MAPS
Investigations into the abduction are ongoing, including into the theft of her phone and wallet and her alleged deprivation of liberty.
During the raid, 22 non-EU citizens with illegal immigration status were identified and arrested.
Half of them were issued expulsion orders and taken to pre-removal detention centres in Ponte Galeria, Palazzo San Gervasio, and Bari.
The victim identified her rapists from the group of migrants through photographic identification.