Woman ‘jumped from moving vehicle and hid in bush’ to escape alleged kidnapper

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Tony Fusco is charged with multiple offences after picking up two people on Falls Road in the early hours of Sunday morning

A woman jumped out of a moving vehicle and hid in a bush in an attempt to hide from a man who was trying to kidnap her and force her to take drugs, a court heard.

Tony Fusco, 41, of Central Promenade, Newcastle, appeared in court via video link after being charged with multiple offences, including kidnap, false imprisonment and common assault following the incident that took place in the early hours of Sunday, August 24.

The court heard that the woman and a male friend had been walking along Falls Road at around 5am, following a concert in Belfast, and had been attempting to flag down a taxi.

Fusco, who was driving a Citroen Berlingo, stopped and offered the pair a lift and after they got in the vehicle they became concerned that he started driving in the opposite direction they had said they wanted to go.

Fusco then drove to Applegreen service station after saying that he was low on petrol and needed to get more and upon arrival he gave the victim's male friend £10 and told him to go in and pay while he put petrol in his vehicle. Following this, Fusco reportedly took out a bag containing a white powder and forced some of it into the woman's mouth using his finger before driving from the service station without getting any petrol and leaving the male friend behind.

The court heard that while driving, Fusco began to rub his genitals and forced more of the powder into the woman's mouth, which caused her mouth to go numb.

The woman then managed to leave the vehicle while it was still moving and hid in a bush, with the court hearing that Fusco "circled the area" in his car before leaving.

The woman then managed to make her way to Lisburn where she hid in an alleyway for a friend to pick her up, with her reporting the incident to the police.

Fusco was later located and arrested with officers reportedly finding cannabis and pregabalin at his home.

The court heard that Fusco accepted picking up the pair but claimed that the victim had possessed the drugs and denied forcing them on her. He was also not able to offer an explanation on why he was in the area at that time, why he did not get petrol and why he left the male friend at the service station.

Fusco's representation requested bail, saying that he does not currently live in the Belfast area or know the victim and her male friend, saying he did not have "the worst record that the court will have seen".

However, bail was refused and he was remanded in custody as he faced "sinister and serious allegations".

He is due to appear in court again on September 23.