“HE NEEDS to be caught before he can hurt anyone else like he hurt me.”

Those were the words of a rape victim who was attacked while on a night out in Oxford city centre three weeks ago.

The 19-year-old today told the Oxford Mail the ordeal had changed her life and left her nervous and too scared to go out on her own.

She pleaded with the public for help to track down the man before he attacks someone else.

She said: “This assault has changed my life. I don’t want him to change anyone else’s.

“He needs to be caught before he can hurt anyone else like he hurt me.”

The woman went into the city centre with college friends on the evening of Friday, October 22, after getting an unexpected night off work.

At Anubar, in Park End Street, she met a man in his twenties and the pair went on to the nearby Bridge nightclub, in Hythe Bridge Street.

But, as the club closed its doors at 3am, she began feeling “nervous and disorientated” and woke up in a car to find the man was raping her while she was unable to speak or defend herself.

The victim said reliving the experience for the police investigation had been horrendous.

She said: “It seems never-ending and will be something I have to go through for a long time yet. This assault is always on my mind.

“If I don’t distract myself or keep myself busy, I start thinking about it. I have to work hard to not think about it.”

Detectives still do not know where the attack took place between 3am and 5am on Saturday, October 23.

They know that the victim opened the door of a five-door car and was sick and the area was brightly lit.

The woman recalled: “I remember being in a car and being assaulted. I wasn’t able to do anything about it. I couldn’t defend myself or even speak.”

She added: “I don’t go out on my own any more. Family and close friends take me places. I don’t even like catching buses on my own.

“I’m managing to go to college and work, but that’s only down to the great support of my family and friends.

“Strangers make me nervous. I’m having to take every thing a step at a time and work through the obstacles as best I can.”

Detective Inspector Simon Morton confirmed that officers investigating the case were still trying to trace the man in a CCTV image issued last week.

He said: “We are adamant that there is someone who knows what happened and we need them to come forward as soon as possible.”

He is described as black, about 5ft 8in, with short, dark hair and possibly had a moustache.

He was wearing a light-coloured, long-sleeved hooded top, jeans and trainers.

The victim has distinctive blonde hair and was wearing a bright pink sleeveless top with ruffles on the front, black leggings and boots.

  • Anyone with information should call Det Insp Morton on 08458 505505 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.