Kerala police registered five cases and arrested at least 15 people after an 18-year-old Dalit player in Pathanamthitta district alleged that around 60 people, including his teammates, coaches and classmates, had been with him for the past five years. sexually assaulted, officers said. Saturday.

While six people were arrested on Friday, nine more were arrested on Saturday, a day after five First Information Reports (FIRs) were lodged in two police stations in the district, police added. That these cases were registered on the basis of the survivor’s statement. .

Pathanamthitta Superintendent of Police VG Vinod Kumar has constituted a special investigation team to investigate. A detailed investigation is on,” said a senior police officer.

In her statement to the police, the survivor, who is a district-level athlete, said she was raped by 62 people at the age of 13 along with her friend, who is her neighbour. An officer said that the accused and the police are trying to find out if the woman was gang-raped by the accused.

Officials added that a woman sub-inspector of Pathanamthita police station will record her detailed statement.

The woman’s candid photos and videos, allegedly recorded by a “friend”, were used to intimidate her and she was repeatedly abused over the years. Explicit material was also allegedly shared between the criminals, police said.

In her statement to the police, the woman said that she used her father’s mobile phone to communicate with the suspects and after the police verified the details of the phone and the information from the diary in her possession. At least 40 people have been identified. said the police officer.

A senior police officer investigating the case, requesting anonymity, said, “This is a rare and troubling case of prolonged abuse, driven by the victim’s determination to document her abusers. has been made even more important, which will enable a comprehensive investigation.”

In addition to the relevant provisions of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) on rape and sexual exploitation and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offenses Act (POCSO), the police have made the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) ) has also invoked various provisions of the Act. 1989, said a senior police officer of the district.

The relatives first reported to the Sunehita Gender Help Desk under Kadambashri in Pandalam. She was then sent to the District Child Welfare Committee and later to the Nirbhaya Shelter Home in Konni, where she narrated her ordeal to a psychologist, who recorded her testimony, police said.

An official of the Pathanamthita Child Welfare Committee (CWC) said that people from outside the district may also be involved in the matter.

This woman has been a victim of sexual abuse since the age of 13. Since it was an unusual case, he was referred to a psychiatrist for further in-depth consultation, the CWC chairperson told a local news channel. The CWC also revealed that several phone numbers of possible suspects were found on her father’s phone.

Police said that a total of five FIRs have been registered in connection with the rape incident, allegedly involving several people, and more FIRs will be registered and more arrests will be made. The issue came up during the CWC’s counseling of an 18-year-old girl, who had been alerted by the survivor’s teachers about significant changes in her behavior.

with agency input