I had to beg Alps rapist for my life
Brit skier tells how she was grabbed by 3 men then dumped in snow
A YOUNG skier has revealed how she was abducted from the roadside by three men before being raped and dumped in the snow.
Hannah Power, 26, said the attack took place as she was heading back to her friend’s chalet after a night out in Morzine, France.
The law graduate has bravely waived her right to anonymity and is sharing her story to try to help others who have been attacked.
Miss Power’s ordeal came when she got lost on her way home from a night club in the Alpine ski resort. She said the three men had pulled over in a car and, claiming to know a friend of hers, offered her a lift.
However, soon after accepting, she realised something was not quite right and ‘started to scream and beg, “Let me out”’.
The men pretended they could not understand and Miss Power thought they were going to kill her. ‘I was begging for my life,’ she said.
Instead of taking her to the chalet, the attackers took Miss Power to a quiet spot where the driver raped her. She believes she stopped the others by fighting back. She said: ‘I think all three were planning to do it. The driver turned around and raped me on the back seat. I was fighting and kicking him.
‘There was this voice in my head that said everything was going to be okay, keep fighting. It would have been heavily unpleasant for him, how much I was kicking and punching.
‘I think they decided, “This isn’t as easy as we thought… let’s get rid of her”.’
After the assault, Miss Power was driven back towards the town. Her attackers stole her phone and then threw her out of the car, tossing her tights after her. Left with bare legs and feet in the snow, she walked up the hill towards the lights of the town to find help.
Miss Power, from Farnham, Surrey, criticised French police after they made no arrests and dropped the case just four months after the attack in March 2016. She told the Sunday Mirror: ‘There was no big plea for witnesses. It was like a crime that went away.’ Because the men were never caught, Miss Power fears they may have targeted other vulnerable women since. She said: ‘The bit I don’t like is it could happen to others and there’s nothing I can do. That’s much more painful to me than me personally not getting my justice.’
Miss Power suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder after the assault, but has since found some solace in helping other rape victims come to terms with their attacks.
She now hopes sharing her story more widely can provide a voice for others who have been raped.
Miss Power, who works in marketing, said: ‘I’ve helped people who reached out to me. One was attacked abroad shortly after me. I knew how she’d be feeling. ‘One thing that makes you feel most alone is when even those who love you don’t know what to say. Remove the stigma and we remove the loneliness.’ She added: ‘I’m not going to have my life ruined by this. I’m going to talk about it. I’m going to listen to sad songs and cry. The quicker I can let the pain in, the Miss quicker Power it recently will leave.’ launched a jewellery range – called ‘Sederhana’ – to raise money for survivors of sexual violence. For every necklace sold, £30 goes to the Rape and Sexual Abuse Support Centre. In a video she posted online, she said: ‘I feel a sense of duty now to share my story and to be a voice for people who aren’t yet ready to talk about it themselves.’
‘I think all three planned to do it’