Nine more people were taken into custody for allegedly raping a Dalit girl, who is an athlete, at various locations when she was a minor, police said on Saturday. According to police, 15 people, including a minor have been held in connection with the case so far. The Kerala police have tightened the investigation by invoking more stringent charges under the relevant section of IPC and Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act along with the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO) against the accused. Six people were arrested on Friday after registration of five FIRs, with more expected to follow, in two police stations in the Pathanamthitta district. The arrests were made based on the statement of an 18-year-old girl, who alleged she had been subjected to rape multiple times since the age of 16. The police said that they received evidence indicating that the girl was exploited by individuals including her sports trainers, fellow athle