An elderly village witch doctor in Indonesia entrapped a girl from the age of 12 and deceived her into sex for 15 years by claiming to be possessed by the jin, or spirit, of a young boy, police said on Tuesday.

The woman, an identified by police as “H”, was rescued on Sunday in Tolitoli regency, in Central Sulawesi province.

Acting on a tip-off, police said they found the woman, who is now 28, in a rocky crevice in a jungle near Bajugan village, where she had been held during the day since her disappearance in 2003.

At night, police said she stayed in a hut near the house of the 83-year old man, identified by police as “JG”.

Central Sulawesi police chief Muhammad Iqbal Alqudusy said the man had shown the girl a picture of a boy named Amrin “who she thought was her boyfriend”.

“She was led to believe that Amrin’s spirit had entered [the elderly man’s] body,” Iqbal said on Tuesday at a news conference.

The 83-year-old man is alleged to have kidnapped the woman when she was 12. Photograph: Indonesian Police Handout

Indonesia is a predominantly Muslim country but other beliefs about spirits and paranormal activity are held by some.

Iqbal later told Reuters the woman said she had been having intercourse with “Jin Amrin” since 2003. The man, Iqbal said, admitted to sexual relations since 2008.

Police said they found the woman after her sister alerted neighbours she was nearby. According to the Jakarta Post, the sister was married to the son of the shaman, known for his traditional healing methods and abilities to channel spirits.

The shaman explained the victim’s disappearance to her parents by saying she had gone to Jakarta to work, the newspaper reported. He has been charged with offences under child protection laws, which carry a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison.