Abductors branded jogger Sherri Papini before dumping her at roadside

A California woman who was held captive for three weeks was branded with a message by her abductors before she was dropped at the side of a freeway, authorities have said.

Shasta County Sheriff Tom Bosenko said the suspects may have been trying to humiliate Sherri Papini by cutting off her long hair and branding her.

He told Good Morning America that the brand was a message, not a symbol.

"I would think that was some sort of either an exertion of power and control and/or maybe some type of message," he said.

He did not divulge where Mrs Papini had been branded.

The mother-of-two disappeared while jogging on 2 November near her home in Redding. She was dumped at the side of Interstate 5 near Sacramento on Thanksgiving.

Her husband, Keith Papini, said his 34-year-old wife was covered with bruises and burns and was chained at the waist and wrists when she was found.

In a written statement, he addressed claims which raise speculation about the abduction.

He wrote: "Rumours, assumptions, lies, and hate have been both exhausting and disgusting."

Sheriff Bosenko said no ransom demand had been made, and added that investigators had no reason to doubt the abduction.

Mr Papini said his wife weighed just 87lbs and the bridge of her nose had been broken when she was thrown from a vehicle with her hands tied and a bag over her head.

She has been unable to recall any details about her abduction and has not been able to describe her two female abductors because their faces were covered.