Woman Says She Endured Four Years of Torture After 'Loner' Captor She Met Online Kept Her Locked in Barn

A woman, identified only as Malgorzata, endured over four years of captivity and abuse in an unused animal barn in Poland at the hands of a man she met online.

The 30-year-old was subjected to regular beatings, sexual assault and mental abuse by Mateusz J, who she met on a dating site in 2019. Malgorzata was repeatedly hospitalized for injuries, including a broken arm, a broken leg and a dislocated shoulder injury. She eventually alerted medical staff to the alleged situation, and they then called police, according to Polish outlet Fakt.

Malgorzata reportedly told authorities that she was injured after not meeting her alleged tormenter's sexual expectations.

During her captivity, Malgorzata reportedly was impregnated by her captor and later forced to give up her child for adoption.

She told The Telegraph, "I couldn't tell the doctors the truth, I was afraid, and he threatened me that if I complained, it would get even worse." It was also reported that Mateusz would take the victim outside every night and hose her down with cold water.

The woman, who said she was genuinely in love with Mateusz, was in her 20s when she met him online and traveled from Leszno to the village of Gaiki, near Glogow, to be with him, leaving her children from a previous relationship with her parents.

Prosecutors revealed that she was held captive in a stone barn that was previously used for animals, just 13 feet from Mateusz's unsuspecting neighbors.

During her imprisonment, she had no access to basic hygiene products, running water, electricity or heating, and was kept in total isolation, having to wear a hood over her eyes when she was taken outside.

Locals described Mateusz, who was arrested and faces up to 25 years in prison, as a "loner" and a "freak."

This case has drawn comparisons to Austria’s notorious Josef Fritzl case, in which Fritzl imprisoned his daughter in a basement for 24 years and fathered seven children with her.

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Malgorzata's ordeal included not only broken bones but also severe internal injuries; she required surgery after suffering damage to her anus after it was left scarred by a stake.

Mateusz, who denies any wrongdoing, was arrested on Aug. 30, and charged with mental, physical and sexual, authorities said.