A 45-year-old Afghan national has been arrested in Perugia on suspicion of aggravated rape, kidnapping, and inflicting multiple injuries on a 21-year-old female student.

The young woman, who, according to Rai News, was in the Umbrian capital to study, claims she was held against her will, raped for hours, and violently assaulted inside an abandoned bar in the city center.

A video she recorded during part of the assault has been seized by police and was instrumental in identifying the suspect.

According to investigators, the incident occurred on the evening of July 19. Il Giornale reported how the victim had been approached by the man with a casual excuse and engaged in a brief conversation, during which he claimed he was planning to open a restaurant. He then invited her to see the site, described as a former bar undergoing renovation, located along the route she was taking home.

Reassured by the man’s friendly demeanor, the young woman accepted the invitation. Once inside the premises, the conversation continued, with the man even suggesting the possibility of a future job once the restaurant opened.

However, when the woman tried to leave, she found the entrance locked. She was then allegedly groped, thrown to the ground, and had her mouth covered to prevent her from screaming. The man is then accused of subjecting her to repeated sexual assaults over the course of several hours, until she managed to escape at dawn.

The victim waited several days before reporting the assault to police until her mother had flown to Italy. She later went to the Santa Maria della Misericordia Hospital, where doctors documented injuries expected to take 30 days to heal.

The investigation took a decisive turn when police reviewed video footage taken by the victim during the attack.

On Monday morning, the suspect was arrested following an order issued by the Perugia Prosecutor’s Office.

DNA extracted from the victim reportedly matched the suspect.