A 21-year-old woman was raped twice in a six-hour ordeal after being attacked near Oxford city centre.

The terrifying incident began as the victim walked along Bulwarks Lane - which runs between New Road and George Street in the city centre - at about 4.30am in the early hours of Saturday.

She was left "very traumatised" by the rape but did not require hospital treatment.

Her attacker, who is described as a tall, black, well-built but athletic man, not only raped her at the scene but also forced her into a beige Nissan car parked near the Mongolian Wok Bar at the lane's George Street exit.

The terrified victim was then driven to a house in Headington, where she was taken inside a room and raped for a second time.

The woman's ordeal finally ended when the rapist drove her back to the city centre and released her at about 11am on Saturday.

Det Sgt Vince Gilio, who is leading the police investigation, said: "We can only describe this as being a very serious incident which left this young woman severely traumatised."

He added that police had a "strong suspect" but they believed he had now left the Oxford area.

Anyone who has any information about the attack should contact police at St Aldate's police station or ring 01865 266310.

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