The last known trace of Sudiksha Konanki, a 20-year-old American student, shows her walking hand in hand with a man along the beach promenade at dawn.
Surveillance footage captured the final moments before she vanished, leaving behind a trail of mystery and heartbreak.
Vanished without a trace
The disappearance of Sudiksha Konanki, a 20-year-old University of Pittsburgh student from Loudoun County, Virginia, has captured national attention as new, unsettling details continue to emerge
Sudiksha vanished while vacationing in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, earlier this month, leaving both her family and authorities searching for answers.
What was meant to be a relaxing spring break has now turned into a haunting mystery, with few clues to explain her sudden and unexplained disappearance.
It all started when Sudiksha Konanki, 20, went on spring break with five female friends in early March, in Punta Cana.
Three days later, she vanished without a trace on March 6.
Last seen around 5:50 am on the beach with another tourist, Joshua Steven Riibe, her disappearance has left many in shock and confusion.
It also triggered a frantic search by air, sea, and land, with authorities from the United States, the Dominican Republic, and India — Sudiksha’s family’s home country — joining the effort.
“This is one of the largest operations we have carried out for the rescue of a person,” Agustín Morillo Rodríguez, general commander of the Dominican Republic Navy, told CNN.
Last photo
Dominican officials initially believed Sudiksha’s disappearance was a drowning. The night she disappeared, sea conditions were dangerous due to high waves.
However, the general prosecutor’s office has stated they are now also looking into whether her disappearance might involve something more than just an accident.
A new surveillance image shows missing Pitt student cuddling up to a male friend just before disappearing from a Dominican Republic beach. This is the last known photo of her, according to Noticias SIN.
Passed out from drinking
According to the man who was last seen with Sudiksha, Joshua Steven Riibe, he is cooperating with the investigation. Police do not consider him a suspect.
Riibe, from Rock Rapids, Iowa, claims that he was on the beach with Sudiksha when things took a turn. He says he passed out from drinking, and when he woke up, she was gone.
Initially, he also told authorities that he had saved her from a dangerous wave, preventing her from drowning, but after that, his memory goes blank.
According to a transcript obtained by NBC News, Riibe said he and Sudiksha were ”in waist-deep water, talking and kissing a little.” He described how a wave crashed and pulled them both ”out to sea.”
”I kept trying to get her to breathe, but that made it hard for me to breathe as well, and I swallowed a lot of water,” Riibe explained, adding that he had previously worked as a lifeguard.
He claimed that after the wave, he managed to get both himself and Konanki back to shore before she disappeared.
”The last time I saw her, I asked if she was OK. I didn’t hear her answer,” he said. ”I looked around and didn’t see anyone. I thought she’d grabbed her things and left.”
Confiscated Ribe’s passport
Dominican authorities confiscated Riibe’s passport on Friday as part of their ongoing investigation, his attorneys confirmed to NBC News. His documents were seized when he attempted to check out of his hotel, as reported by Fox News.
“Joshua Steven Riibe, who has been identified as a ‘person of interest,’ remains in custody and is being interrogated at the National Police’s Gender Violence Unit to gather more information about the incident,” a rep for the Caribbean nation said in an update on Friday.
According to police sources, Riibe, a student at St. Cloud University in Minnesota, is considered a ”key element” in the ongoing investigation.
He was also seen on a beach Saturday morning, according to NBC News.
Speaking to reporters, he said, “I’m just trying to help them out,” referring to the ongoing search for Sudiksha. He also added, “The ocean is a dangerous place,” emphasizing the perilous conditions in which she disappeared.
Refused to answer eight questions
Although Riibe is not a suspect, it appears that the Dominican police have been quite tough on him. Riibe reportedly refused to answer eight questions during intense questioning, as reported by Noticias Sin.
His parents, Albert and Tina Riibe, have criticized the Dominican Republic police, defending their son amid the ongoing investigation.
They claimed he had been detained under “irregular” conditions and subjected to extensive questioning. The family also alleged that no official translators were present during the early stages of the interrogation, and that official translators weren’t brought in until March 12. Additionally, they said their son had been questioned for long hours without proper assistance.
Joshua Riibe, 22, is a senior at St. Cloud State University in Minnesota, studying land survey and mapping sciences. He is scheduled for further questioning on Monday, according to Noticias SIN.
“He’s a great kid. He wouldn’t hurt a fly,” an aunt, Theresa Riibe, told the Daily Mail.
What Sudiksha’s family says
Sudiksha’s family, along with Loudoun County Sheriff Mike Chapman, has called on authorities to explore every possible lead in the case.
Konanki’s parents, Subbarayudu and Sreedevi Konanki, returned to Virginia last week after traveling to Punta Cana with two family friends, Chapman confirmed.
Subbarayudu has formally requested that the investigation be expanded.
In his request, Subbarayudu pointed out that his daughter’s belongings, including her phone and wallet, were left with her friends, which he found unusual since she always carried her phone. This detail was included in a report, though the source of the information is unclear.
In an earlier interview with CNN, Subbarayudu also urged authorities to consider the possibility of kidnapping or human trafficking as part of the investigation.
The case has left many questioning what really happened that fateful morning. Could there be more to this story than meets the eye?
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