In August I went through the most awful experience of my life, an experience that I know will haunt me forever. I am waging this legal battle for which I am asking for your help in protecting myself and others who may become victims if this person is not held accountable.

A so-called friend whom I had known for a year and a half asked me to take him into my home for two days, I agreed to help him and he used the trust and goodwill to manipulate me and to carry out his macabre plan. On 29 August, I was raped and almost killed by strangulation and asphyxiation by this 'man' still at large.

I miraculously managed to escape and made my way out of the apartment into the staircase of the apartment block, where I climbed barefoot up several flights of stairs while screaming for help and desperately knocking on neighbours' doors in the hope of being rescued, in the sincere belief that that was where I would meet my end in those moments. Fortunately, a few neighbours came outside and a lady took me into her flat to be safe until the police arrived.

I had to move to a friend's house for the night because of the trauma I had suffered and because I was not safe at all, not knowing at any time where the attacker was, and no preventive measures had been taken against him.

With a lot of hard work and with the help of people who heard about my case, I was finally able to find a new home. It was, and still is, an extremely difficult process financially, as it involved and still involves many unexpected costs.

As soon as the rape and attempted murder took place, I started the legal proceedings, but even these proved to be very time-consuming and costly. I went to the police where, after several obstacles (I was not taken seriously, I was not allowed to make a full statement about what had happened the first time, I was not told that I could obtain a provisional protection order), I managed to file a complaint for the offences of rape and attempted murder, and I was also granted a provisional protection order and later a court protection order.

I applied for a forensic medical certificate from the INML for the non-consensual sexual intercourse to which I was subjected, as well as for the physical assaults I suffered, and a day later I was rushed to the Bucharest University Emergency Hospital, as I was in terrible pain in the area of my neck, where I was asphyxiated, and in the area of my head.

I am currently working with a lawyer who is an important support for me as he is very involved, empathetic and determined to do justice so that my voice, as well as other victims' voices, can be heard. With his help and the support of a solicitor from the Independent Midwives Association, I managed to get the court protection order for a maximum of 12 months, but the fight is far from over.

The proceedings do not stop there, as the abuser is still at large and the legal proceedings are costly and lengthy. In this regard, I need financial support to be able to cover the costs of the legal assistance I need to complete this legal action and to ensure that this abuser does not continue to harm anyone.

In addition to these legal costs, there are also medical costs, including therapy sessions, psychiatric counselling and medication for depression and ADHD, which has to be purchased monthly.

Relocation costs were not a planned expense and not one that I could afford at the time, as I had no source of income at the moment as my interest was my licence exam, which I was unable to sit due to the experience I had gone through.

Because of the post-traumatic shock, it is extremely difficult for me to reconnect with people and get back into the labour market. I find it very difficult to leave the house and live my life as I did before. I am afraid that they might find me at any moment or something bad might happen to me.

For all these reasons, I am appealing to the community, I need help to get through this difficult time and to make sure that this abuser will never again endanger my life or the lives of other women.

English:

In August I went through the most horrific experience of my life, an experience that I know will haunt me forever. I am fighting this legal battle for which I am asking for your help to ensure my protection and other people who may become victims if the person in question is not held accountable.

A so-called friend whom I had known for a year and a half asked me to welcome him to my house for two days, I agreed to help him and he used the trust and goodwill offered to manipulate me and implement his macabre plan. On August 29, I was raped and almost killed by strangulation and asphyxiation by this "man" who is still free.

I miraculously managed to escape and get out of the flat in the stairwell of the building where I climbed several floors in my bare feet while shouting for help and desperately knocking on neighbours' doors, hoping to be rescued, honestly believing that there I will find my end in those moments. Luckily, some neighbours came out and a lady took me into her apartment to keep me safe until the police came.

I had to move in with a friend overnight because of the trauma I suffered and because I was not at all safe, not knowing at any moment where the aggressor was, no preventive measures being taken against him.

With much effort and help from people who heard about my cause, I finally managed to find a new home. It was and still is an extremely difficult process from a financial point of view, as it involved and involves multiple unforeseen costs.

From the moment the rape and attempted murder took took place, I started legal proceedings, but these also proved to be difficult and expensive. I went to the police where, after several hurdles (not being taken seriously, not being allowed to make a full statement about what happened at first, not being told I could get a temporary protection order ), I was able to file a complaint for rape and attempted murder, while also obtaining a temporary protection order and later a court order of protection.

I requested to obtain a medico-legal certificate from INML for the non-consensual sexual act to which I was subjected, as well as for the physical assaults I suffered, and a day later I arrived urgently at the Bucharest University Emergency Hospital, as I had terrible pain in the neck area, where I was suffocated, as well as in the head area.

I am currently working with a lawyer who is an important support for me because he is very involved, empathetic and determined to do justice so that my voice as well as that of other victims is heard. With his help and the support of a lawyer from the Association of Independent Midwives, I managed to obtain the court protection order for the maximum period of 12 months, but the fight is far from over.

The proceedings do not stop here, as the aggressor is still at large, and legal proceedings are expensive and long-lasting. In this regard, I need financial support to be able to cover the costs of the legal assistance I need to complete this legal action and ensure that this abuser will not harm anyone again.

To these legal costs are also added the medical ones, including therapy sessions, psychiatric counselling and medication for depression and ADHD, medication that must be purchased at least monthly.

Relocation costs were not a planned expense and not one that I could have afforded at the time, as I had no source of income at the moment, as my interest was in the licensure exam, which I was no longer able to take I give it because of the experience I went through.

Due to post traumatic shock, it is extremely difficult for me to reconnect with people and re-enter the workforce. It is very difficult for me to leave the house and live my life the way I used to. I'm afraid they might find me at any moment or something bad might happen to me.

For all of these reasons, I am appealing to the community, I need help to get through this difficult time and to ensure that this abuser will never again put my life or the lives of other women in danger.