An Arizona woman is lucky to be alive after allegedly being kidnapped, raped, and beaten by her fiancé this week.
The victim, who FOX 10 News reported to be between 18 and 19 years old, was assaulted after allegedly refusing to proceed with an arranged marriage.
The families of the engaged couple are Muslims from Somalia, and arranged the Islamic marriage between the teen and 30-year-old Mohamed Abdullahi.
"Her family entered into an agreement or 'Nikah' with another family against the girl's wishes," said Phoenix Police Sgt. Trent Crump. The girl wanted to "live her life how she wants to live her life," Crump continued.
"Here clearly this is something she did not want to be a part of."
Police said the teen ran away for 15 days when she found out she was to be married, but returned to finish high school. After graduation, she still did not want to marry Abdullahi, and was allegedly forced into his apartment.
A witness, Trina Childs, reported seeing the bride-to-be on Monday.
"I saw some guys carrying a girl in, so I ran over to the front and they threw somebody and that girl in this house, and all of them just walked out," Childs said. "She was crying, she was just screaming, and shaking her head."
According to police, a mattress was placed in front of the door to keep the girl from leaving the apartment. After being allegedly beaten and raped, the young woman used her tablet to contact a friend to call for help. Police found her bleeding with bruises on her neck and a bite mark.
Abdullahi was arrested on Tuesday on charges of rape and kidnapping, and a Somali translator was present for the hearing.
