Paris gang rape attack: Shocking moment Australian victim flees her attackers, begs for help from kebab shop staff

A harrowing security video captured the moment a visibly distraught Australian woman sought refuge in a Parisian kebab shop after being gang-raped, only to be confronted by one of the men who had attacked her minutes earlier.

French authorities have launched a major investigation into the brazen attack that took place in the early hours of Saturday morning in the French capital’s famous Moulin Rouge party district, just days before the Olympic Games begin.

The woman told police she was attacked by a group of five men “of African appearance” at around 5am and brutally raped before escaping and seeking safety at the nearby Dounia kebab shop.

CCTV footage from the Lebanese restaurant on Boulevard de Clinchy in the 18th arrondissement shows the terrified 25-year-old sitting inside the restaurant begging the owners for help as staff and other customers try in vain to comfort her.

Then a man enters the kebab shop, but the woman gestures that he is part of the group that just attacked her.

Then the alleged rapist walks up to her, taps her on the shoulder and orders some food.

A guest then confronts the alleged rapist and strikes as staff try to separate them. The man then leaves the restaurant.

The staff and visitors continue to comfort the woman until the police arrive at the scene and question her about the horrific event, after which she is taken to the hospital in Bichat.

The woman, who was described as having her dress “inside out,” also claimed her cell phone had been stolen.

Harrowing security footage has captured the moment a visibly distraught Australian woman sought refuge in a Parisian kebab shop after she was allegedly gang-raped. People are pictured helping the woman, who is blurred, outside the kebab shop

The Australian woman sought refuge in the kebab shop in Paris but was confronted by one of the men who had attacked her minutes earlier. Bystanders are pictured talking to the woman, who is blurred, and police

The footage could be crucial to French authorities’ investigation into the alarming incidents, which have cast a pall over the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games in the city later this week.

The woman was said to be “disoriented and unable to speak a word of French” when she told police what had happened. She reportedly could not provide details about the exact location or circumstances surrounding the attack.

According to reports, the woman had booked a flight home for the day after the attack, but is now said to be in Paris to help police with their investigation.

The Boulevard de Clinchy, famous for its art and theatre venues, is located in the centre of Paris’ famous red light district. Next to the kebab shop where the woman sought refuge, there is a lap dance club and a sex shop.

Paris police want to prevent fear among tourists as hundreds of thousands of people flock to the French capital for the Olympic Games. The Paris Public Prosecutor’s Office confirms that a thorough investigation is underway.

A guest confronted the alleged rapist (out of focus) and punched him as staff tried to separate them

“The investigation into the allegation of gang rape, which is believed to have taken place during the night of July 19 to 20, has been entrusted to the second judicial police district,” the Paris Public Prosecutor’s Office said.

The police union Alliance Paris said investigators “will do everything they can to identify the individuals as quickly as possible and bring them to justice”.

The shocking attack is the latest in a series of rapes taking place in the French capital.

In June, a young British woman was raped during an annual street music festival in central Paris.

According to a police source, the tourist was found crying as she staggered through the streets of Paris’s 1st arrondissement in the early hours of the morning after she was attacked and then robbed.

She was holding her underwear in her hands, in a state of great distress, hours after leaving a concert at the Olympia hall. This was one of hundreds of events held across France on June 21 in honor of the “Fête de la Musique,” better known in English as “Make Music Day.”

She later told police that she was approached by several men and taken to a secluded place, where they raped her and stole her phone, Le Figaro reported.

The woman told police she was attacked by a group of five men ‘of African appearance’ at around 5am and brutally raped before fleeing and seeking safety in the nearby Dounia kebab shop.

Police fear the attack was filmed during the attack, which follows similar attacks at the event.

Earlier in June, a 12-year-old Jewish girl was raped in an abandoned hangar.

The girl from Courbevoie, in the Hauts-de-Seine suburb northwest of the French capital, told police she had been raped by three youths over the weekend, one of whom she said was her ex-boyfriend.

Detectives heard how the gang grabbed her as she sat with her boyfriend on Place Henri Regnault in Courbevoie and dragged her to an abandoned warehouse in the nearby La Defense district to carry out the attack.

According to a police source, the youths forced her to perform sexual acts “while making death threats and anti-Semitic remarks” during the horrific attack. The ex-boyfriend accused the victim of “hiding her Jewish religion from him.”

In January, an American woman told police she was “raped and left on the side of the road” while in Paris to attend Fashion Week.

According to French daily Le Parisien, the tourist was raped by two men after taking drugs given to her by one of them.

The latest rape came despite an increased police presence on the streets of Paris in the run-up to the Olympic Games.

Armed guards have been spotted patrolling the city’s boulevards and sites, while metal barriers now line the Seine.

The defense system consists of a huge force of some 45,000 police officers from 43 countries and 18,000 soldiers.

In addition to human efforts, several air units will also be involved in the “unprecedented” operation, including Rafale fighter jets, AWACS surveillance flights, Reaper surveillance drones and helicopters carrying experienced snipers.

There is a huge security presence in Paris ahead of the Olympic Games, which start on Friday

Around 1,700 members of the British police force are already supporting French officers in Paris and Marseille, as are British sniffer dogs hand-picked by French authorities.

Images from Paris today show the city behind rows of metal barriers, as residents and tourists dine in restaurants behind fences near the River Seine – where the opening ceremony will take place on Friday.

The four-mile-long metal barricade was put in place by the Paris police prefecture and will remain in place throughout the Games to prevent and deter trouble.

The anti-terrorism fence, also known as SILT (steel belt), ultimately forms the first line of defense and was first erected on July 18.

Anyone wishing to enter the protected area must scan a QR code to gain access to the closed-off part of the city.

Cars are also not allowed to enter certain zones around a number of event locations. Only emergency services are allowed to pass.