NATASCHA KAMPUSCH, the Austrian teenager held captive for eight years, was subjected to psychological terror and violence by her kidnapper in order to break her spirit, according to reports leaked from the police investigation.

Fräulein Kampusch was told by her captor, Wolfgang Priklopil, that her parents had refused to pay a ransom to get her back. She had confirmed that her abductor had been violent but said: “I do not want to talk about that,” according to sources quoted in News magazine.

Priklopil, 44, became a father figure, teaching her geography and history, and reading stories.

She added that “he brought me books to read and I asked him totally normal children’s questions” about foreign countries and animals.

Priklopil tried to destroy her hopes of being rescued. “He told me he was continuously calling my parents. They could have me back if they were ready to pay him 10 million schillings (£500,000). But he told me that neither were ever picking up [the telephone], because I was obviously not so important to them.”

Psychologists treating Fräulein Kampusch have said that she has adopted a “reserved attitude” towards her parents since her release. She had been in regular phone contact with her mother since a tearful reunion with both her parents, but had not spoken to her father.

Fräulein Kampusch said that she soon realised that when she was good she would be rewarded with new books and clothes.

After a long time Priklopil started taking Natascha out of her prison and upstairs into his house. They would eat together and she was allowed to watch films with him.

She taught herself handicrafts and cooking from books. When she needed items for dinner she would give Priklopil a shopping list. She said: “At some point we started to have a very normal life together.”

Priklopil fed her horror stories about life outside her cell, showing her newspaper reports about alcoholics and drug addicts. He told her: “Look, I’ve been protecting you from all these terrible things.”

After her 18th birthday in February, Natascha was allowed on trips to shops and museums with Priklopil, who would claim that he was heavily armed and that if she made a noise they would both be dead.

But she explained that when she was in the garden last Wednesday she knew that it was time to leave. “Suddenly I realised that I had to run away, right now,” she said.

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