A 29-year-old woman was kidnapped and driven from Auckland to the Coromandel Peninsula last night, with the offender assaulting her several times during the ordeal before she escaped.
Police said the victim got into a vehicle driven by the man in the Auckland suburb of Glen Innes, on the pretense that they would be going to visit an associate in a nearby suburb.
But once inside the vehicle - which was stolen - the man drove to the Coromandel Peninsula, keeping the victim in the vehicle for more than two hours and assaulting her several times.
The victim escaped when the vehicle ran out of petrol two kilometres from the Coromandel township, after managing to open the passenger door and freeing herself from the offenders grip
She ran to a nearby house, where the owners, described by police as a "very friendly and helpful couple", took the victim in and kept her safe until police and other emergency services arrived.
