\n
Lolita first came to Melbourne in May 2022, according to flight records.<\/p>\n
Although she mostly kept to herself, she soon struck up a friendship with a Sudanese refugee who had also lived in Saudi Arabia, as an undocumented migrant.<\/p>\n
It was Ali – not his real name – who put Lolita in touch with Ms Battisson, as she had helped him with his own asylum claim.<\/p>\n
The human rights lawyer spoke frequently with Lolita from that point onwards, describing her as a \u201csoft spoken\u201d woman with a clear resolve to take back her life: \u201cShe was determined this was her time.\u201d<\/p>\n
But their correspondence ended abruptly in May of last year, after Ms Battisson received a \u201cstrange\u201d text message from Lolita.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was in much more formal language than she had ever used, and it said, \u2018What is my visa status\u2019,\u201d she tells the BBC.<\/p>\n
Lolita’s claim for a protection visa – for people at risk of persecution in their home country – had previously been rejected, but Ms Battisson was helping her appeal against the decision. She says that is something her client was acutely aware of, as the two discussed it frequently.<\/p>\n
\u201cI now believe that message was actually from the people who had taken Lolita,\u201d Ms Battisson says. She thinks they were trying to work out whether Lolita had a permanent visa, which would have given her the right to Australian consular assistance back in Saudi Arabia.<\/p>\n
Then came the radio silence. As the weeks turned to months, Ms Battisson knew in her gut that \u201csomething was seriously wrong\u201d.<\/p>\n
She couldn’t reach Ali either, which was highly unusual as the two kept in regular contact.<\/p>\n
When Ali eventually did return Ms Battisson\u2019s calls, her worst fears were confirmed.<\/p>\n
He said that he had witnessed Lolita being taken, but that the incident had left him so paralysed with fear for his own family, that he\u2019d gone to ground.<\/p>\n
He detailed his last conversation with Lolita – a frantic phone call in which she pleaded for protection from a group of men planning to take her to Saudi Arabia.<\/p>\n
She even sent him pictures of the bags she claimed they had forced her to pack.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\n
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