Slovakian man jailed for raping vulnerable teenager after dragging her from bus stop and battering her with rock
A Slovakian Roma man raped a vulnerable teenage girl after dragging her from a bus stop and battering her with a stone.
Zdenko Turtak, 22, received a 20-year extended jail term after attacking the woman, who had only recently left school, in Leeds in March.
His victim was left with severe head injuries after she was battered 18 times with a rock and raped during the "appalling" eight-minute attack.
The attack
The attack happened on March 6 at about 10.40pm as the 5ft tall woman, who was wearing traditional Muslim dress, was standing at a bus stop in the Beeston area of the city.
Turtak grabbed the girl from behind and dragged her into a nearby garden where they were hidden by a hedge.
The woman was then hit over the head 18 times and brutally raped in an ordeal which lasted eight minutes.
The court heard harrowing details of how the teenager desperately tried to fight off her attacker.
Turtak stalked other women
The whole attack was captured on CCTV which showed Turtak walking away calmly afterwards.
Footage also revealed how he had stalked other women before raping his young victim.
The victim's injuries
The victim managed to stagger into the street where she collapsed in front of two passers-by and managed to say only "rape".
The severity of her injuries left her hospitalised for more than a week.
Detectives believe her hijab and the hood of her coat may have saved her from even more harm.
But the psychological impact continues to be felt to this day, police say.
Detectives cited a time that she decided to go out on her own, panicked, called the police and ran home because she thought was being followed.
The manhunt
Police feared they were looking for a predatory child rapist because Turtak's victim was far younger than she looked.
But officers said the investigation was like "looking for a needle in a haystack" as they had no idea who they were searching for.
After no UK DNA matches were made, officers concluded that the attacker was from outside the country.
Officers finally got their breakthrough when a DNA search in Slovakia linked Turtak - who had been arrested for burglary years earlier - to the crime.
He was extradited to the UK using a European Arrest Warrant.
The manhunt - involving more than 100 officers - was the biggest West Yorkshire Police investigation since the disappearance of Shannon Matthews in 2008.
'Sexual predator high on glue-like substance'
Police believe Turtak may have been high on a glue-like substance when he attacked the 18-year-old.
The teenage girl had told officers of a distinctive smell that she had been unable to get out of her nose and mouth after the attack.
This could have been toluence - a potent chemical used in glue and paint thinners which Slovakian police say is the "drug of choice" among some Roma youths.
Police believe Turtak had been sniffing toluene as he stalked women around Leeds city centre during that evening and in the moments leading up to the attack.
'The nastiest rape I've ever seen'
Detective Superintendant Nick Wallen, who led the investigation said he could not remember a "more nasty, premeditated" rape in his 27 years as a police officer.
'You destroyed her young life'
The attack would affect the victim for the rest of her life, the Recorder of Leeds, Judge Peter Collier QC, told court.
The sentence
Turtak, admitted rape and grievous bodily harm with intent earlier this year but denied attempted murder.
The Crown Prosecution accepted his pleas and chose not to put him on trial for attempted murder.
He was handed an extended sentence of 20 years, with a custodial sentence of 14 years and an extension period of six years.
Judge Collier said Turtak was a "dangerous" offender and a lengthy sentence was needed "for the protection of the public".
As Turtak was led from the dock, members of the victim's family shouted "monster" and "rapist".