UPDATE, 3.45pm: A Mount Gambier man, 23, charged with kidnapping and two counts of rape has been remanded in custody for three months after appearing in a Warrnambool court.
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The man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, appeared in the Warrnambool Magistrates Court for a bail/remand hearing on Wednesday afternoon.
He did not apply for bail and was remanded in custody until December 6.
EARLIER: A 23-year-old Mount Gambier man accused of kidnapping a woman he knew and holding her captive for a week will appear in Warrnambool court today.
Detective Acting Sergeant Jim Beaumont, of the Warrnambool police family violence unit, said the man was arrested on Monday after tense hours of negotiations in dense bush near Casterton.
The man has now been charged with eight offences, including kidnapping, false imprisonment, persistent breaches of intervention orders and serious driving offences.
He was remanded in custody overnight and will appear in the Warrnambool Magistrates Court today for a bail/remand hearing.
Detective Acting Sergeant Beaumont said the woman was known to the man and had got in his car while police claim she was fearful for her safety.
"We're still working with the victim to get a full account of what occurred. The investigation is complex and ongoing," he said.
It's alleged the series of offences started on Monday last week.
Detective Acting Sergeant Beaumont said it was only after the woman was able to notify someone of her whereabouts that information was provided to police that led to a manhunt.
The man and woman were located in the Casterton district walking along a road and the man fled into dense bush.
"A large number of police from both the Hamilton and Portland areas were involved in the recovery operation and the arrest of the man," he said.
"We will be alleging the woman has been held captive for a week between South Australia and Victoria, that the man crossed the border a number of times and police were initially unaware of the woman's predicament."
Detective Acting Sergeant Beaumont said once police became aware they acted quickly to recover the woman.
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