Raped, maimed and killed, her body callously dumped in a barren lot - any or all of that could have been her fate.

But the 19-year-old Queens woman would not let that happen. Not only did she manage to escape her attacker - she turned the tables on him.

Despite being handcuffed, thrown into a van and punched, the young woman had the presence of mind to collect enough evidence to help prosecutors and cops arrest Darryl Littlejohn, also the suspect in the Imette St. Guillen murder.

"This case is outrageous in its audacity," Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said yesterday after Littlejohn was arraigned in Queens Supreme Court on kidnapping, robbery and other charges connected to the Oct. 19 incident.

"You can just imagine the fear that this young woman experienced, walking home from school, on an October afternoon.

"But her reaction was even more impressive. She showed great courage, she showed great calm to wait for the right moment."

As the van slowed near an intersection - about halfway to Littlejohn's 153rd St. home - the teen pushed her body against the doors and threw herself into the street, beaten and badly shaken.

"But she took crucial evidence with her," Kelly said. "She showed a lot of guts."

Prosecutors laid out a persuasive pile of evidence, including a Smith & Wesson key allegedly found on the ex-con's key ring that opened the Smith & Wesson handcuffs used on the York College student.

The kidnapper wore silver-rimmed glasses and a dark blue uniform with the words "Fugitive Agent" in yellow - the sort witnesses have said Littlejohn liked to wear - when he stopped the unsuspecting teen as she walked home from school on a service road to the Van Wyck Expressway, said Queens Assistant District Attorney Frank DeGaetano.

He had a silver handgun, handcuffs and a walkie-talkie. He demanded identification, cuffed her from behind and forced her into his blue van.

She said she kept asking her abductor, "What have I done? What have I done?"

She asked if she could call her sister on her cell phone. Instead, he smacked her twice in the head, told her to shut up and took the phone.

She inched toward the door, but her abductor stopped the van, punched her in the face and head, ordered her to lie down and threw a black jacket over her head.

She refused to give up. She waited, and as the van slowed, she pushed her body against the door and tumbled out, DeGaetano said.

It was near 150-12 112 Ave. - on a direct route to Littlejohn's South Ozone Park home. Prosecutors declined to speculate on his intentions, but sources say they fear he was bringing her to the same spot where authorities believe St. Guillen may have been raped and murdered.

The new case was built largely with the help of the victim.

Scratched, cut and bruised, she still was able to recall a ladder on the van's rear, a spare tire with no cover and a missing license plate - just like Littlejohn's van.

The DNA evidence taken from the handcuffs had residue from at least three people. Tests revealed that the coding matched one in 500,000 people - including Littlejohn, DeGaetano told Queens Supreme Court Justice James Griffin.

When asked, a scowling Littlejohn, 41, said he was not guilty. The short, bulky bouncer rolled his eyes as DeGaetano spoke and later shook his head in seeming disbelief as he was led back to jail.

"My client steadfastly maintains his innocence," defense lawyer Kevin O'Donnell said, later adding, "He did not touch this woman. He hasn't touched a woman in a criminal manner in his entire life."

There was no progress in the probe into her abduction until Feb. 25, when St. Guillen's body was found. After investigators focused on Littlejohn, prosecutors said, the Queens victim recognized the van on TV.

On March 6, she viewed a lineup at Brooklyn's 75th Precinct but failed to pick out Littlejohn. But when she saw a picture later of him wearing glasses, she recognized him, DeGaetano said.

"Clearly, this is not a case that rises and falls upon a single piece of evidence," he told Griffin. "We have built a very strong case proving that this defendant is the man who abducted, handcuffed and beat the complainant on Oct. 19, 2005."

Littlejohn, already held without bail in the St. Guillen murder, faces 25 years on charges of kidnapping, robbery, assault and criminal impersonation. Griffin ordered him held without bail.

With Alison Gendar, Kerry Burke and Hugh Son

The Evidence

Building a case
Queens prosecutors have several key pieces of evidence in the kidnapping case against Darryl Littlejohn:

Van: Victim had presence of mind to remember key details about her attacker's van: It was blue, was missing a license plate and its spare tire was missing a cover.

Handcuffs: Victim still had Smith & Wesson cuffs on when she escaped. DNA found on cuffs is a near-positive match for Littlejohn.

Key: A key allegedly found on Littlejohn's key ring opened the handcuffs.

Clothing: A black jacket recovered from Littlejohn’s house matched description of jacket thrown on the victim in the van.

Appearance: Victim said assailant wore a police-like outfit, including a handgun, handcuffs, walkie-talkie and blue uniform with the words "Fugitive Agent" — matching what witness say Littlejohn often wore.

Originally published on April 28, 2006