British woman allegedly raped near Bilbao

REPORTS have been received that a British woman in her 20s, thought to be an au pair has been raped and left alone in a car park at Arrietara Beach outside of Bilbao in the north of Spain.

She was seen in a distressed state by a passer-by who alerted the police who took her to a nearby hospital where it is believed that she told the authorities that she had been raped on the morning of August 21.

It is understood that the young woman may have been taking part in the celebrations in Bilbao at the festival of Semana Grande, which attracts revellers from all over Spain. Possibly she had been partying and was taken advantage of by another reveller who drove her the nearly 20 kilometres to the beach before attacking her.

Police are aware of the situation but have not released any significant information about the events that took place other than they are considering all of the options and investigating further.