A woman has shared harrowing details after being held captive in an abandoned barn for four years.
The 30-year-old victim, who has been identified only as Malgorzata, first met Mateusz J in 2019 after the pair connected on a dating site, as reported by The Telegraph.
The woman, then in her 20s, traveled to the village of Gaiki, near Glogow in western Poland, to meet the man she did not know would end up as her captor.
She was reportedly imprisoned in an old, unused animal barn - which was just four meters away from the suspect’s neighbors - and was subjected to beatings, rape, and mental torment for four years.
The victim's 35-year-old captor, who locals described as a "loner" and a "freak" - was arrested by police and faces up to 25 years in prison on charges of mental, physical, and sexual abuse.
During the terrifying ordeal, the victim reportedly had no access to hygiene products, running water, toilet, electricity, or heating.
Prosecutors allege that she was only allowed out of the bricked-up building on rare occasions. They also claimed that Mateusz J controlled the young woman by covering her eyes with a hood or making her wear a balaclava - which left her with no way of knowing where she was during her period of torment.
In addition to this, Malgorzata was reportedly impregnated by Mateusz J after being raped and was taken to a hospital in Nowa Sol, Poland to give birth. She was then forced to give the baby up for adoption.
“I couldn’t tell the doctors the truth. I was afraid, and he threatened me that if I complained it would get even worse,” the victim revealed, per the publication.
Malgorzata was taken to hospital on several occasions throughout her captivity. On one occasion, she allegedly broke her arm and her leg, and last year, she needed surgery for damage to her anus after it was left scarred by a stake.
The suspect was apprehended after Malgorzata was brought to a medical clinic once again on Tuesday (August 27), but this time for treatment of a dislocated shoulder. She told the staff about her horrific situation and they then called the police.
The victim opened up to myGlogow about her time in captivity, revealing: "Sometimes he would just spray me with a hose, but if I was obedient, I would get warm water.
“I was beaten and not given food. He only fed me better when I had no strength left when my chest hurt," she shared. "He was probably afraid that I would die.”
The horror case has been compared to Josef Fritzl, a disturbed man who kept his daughter captive in their basement for 24 years and went on to father seven children with her after raping her.
Mateusz J has been questioned and denies any of the charges.
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