Teen girl claims she was drugged and raped by soldiers based at Puckapunyal Military Training Area

A man charged with holding a soldier hostage says he did so to track down two military mates who allegedly drugged and raped a teen girl.

Victoria Police and the Australian Defence Force are investigating allegations two soldiers at Puckapunyal sexually assaulted an 18-year-old woman.

Three men have been charged with holding a soldier hostage after his two army mates were accused of drugging and raping a teenager.

Victoria Police and the Australian Defence Force are ­investigating allegations that two soldiers at Puckapunyal near Seymour sexually assaulted an 18-year-old woman.

But three men who allegedly lured another soldier to a home and held him hostage in a bid to find the names of the rapists have been charged with false imprisonment.

One of the trio — all friends of the woman — said he took matters into his own hands after she detailed allegations of a horror attack at a Nagambie caravan park on November 7.

The woman said she was dropped off at the caravan park by a soldier she knew and, when he left briefly, was raped by two others, leaving her injured and bleeding. The charged man said he used the woman’s phone to lure the soldier to a Euroa home.

A teen girl claims she was raped by two soliders based at Puckapunyal Military Training Area.

“I was fuming and just wanted to go and sort it out,” he said. “I sat down and had a chat with her and she told me, she was shaking, crying, and a bit of a wreck.

“We knew that he didn’t ­actually do anything to her ­except drop her off so it was just to get the other two blokes’ names because she couldn’t ­remember from what (drugs) they fed her.

“He was sitting there and called them. I got on the phone and told them to get over here or their mate would have no teeth left, and they obviously called police because they’re piss weak.”

The man said he was ­arrested after police converged on the house and he walked out to tell them his side.

“They (police) were all really good about it all and were more disgusted in the behaviour of the other blokes than what we did,” the man said.

“One of them shook my hand and said ‘good job’. Most of the AJs (army jerks) can play up a fair bit around here.”

The 39-year-old, from Baddaginnie, said he hoped the ­alleged rapists “lose everything they’ve got and rot in hell for what they did”.

The teen’s mother said her daughter had been traumatised by the attack and was now “like a child again where she needs constant protection and reassurance”.

“It’s like looking at a blank soulless person, it’s like she’s non emotional … she’s put up this wall,” her mother said. The man and two others — a 22-year-old from Euroa and a 20-year-old also from Badda­ginnie, were granted bail to appear in Seymour Magistrates’ Court.

Police are investigating the rape. “A 27-year-old man has been interviewed by detectives in relation to the sexual assault and has been released pending further inquiries,” a police spokeswoman said.

The Defence Department is also investigating. “Defence was aware of allegations of sexual assault against two army members based at Puckapunyal Military Training Area and is investigating these allegations,” a spokesman said.

Originally published as Teen girl claims she was drugged and raped by soldiers based at Puckapunyal Military Training Area