‘I’ll never know for sure what happened to me’

The student was 19 when Worboys spotted her waiting for a bus in the King's Road after a night out and singled her out as his next target.

When he pulled over without being hailed Miss Symonds told him she only had £5, nowhere near enough to pay the fare back to her family home in Richmond.

But Worboys, as with many of his victims, lied that it was his last job of the night and on his way home so the most important thing was to get her back safe.

Miss Symonds, a part-time model and actress, felt "indebted" to him when he told her that he had won thousands in a casino and asked her to have a celebratory drink with him.

Still she initially refused champagne and then poured a glass on the floor, suspicious of his motives. But Worboys kept talking until she felt completely at ease.

She did not feel threatened when he bet her £50 she could not down a shot of vodka. But as soon as she had done so the drugs he had laced it with began to take effect.

His conversation turned sexual. He asked her if she would consider glamour modelling, because she could make a lot of money.

Miss Symonds began to feel dizzy and clung to the side of the taxi as she pleaded with Worboys to take her home. But he had parked in a side road, joined her in the back of the cab and seemed to be waiting for her to lose consciousness.

Miss Symonds, now 20, told today how her memory of the next few hours are patchy and she may never know exactly what happened. She has decided to waive her right to anonymity to tell her story and warn other women of the dangers posed by men like Worboys.

She told the Standard: "I thought he was a sad loner. He wasn't threatening in any way.

"But after the drink I started feeling groggy. I believe I would know if he had assaulted me. But I will never be completely sure what happened to me in the second half of that journey."

When Miss Symonds, who is studying for a theatre studies degree at Warwick University, eventually got home she was violently ill. A five-mile journey had taken two hours. Her mother helped her to bed, describing her as being like a "rag doll", and she did not wake until 2pm the next day.

She did not report the matter to the police and only came forward after a friend saw reports about Worboys in the media.

Miss Symonds had to go through the "nerve-wracking" experience of giving evidence in court. She says that the events of that night in July 2007 have changed her attitude to personal safety.

She said: "I just want to warn women what can happen. To tell them that you really never can be too careful. I would never get in a black cab again."