A search is underway for 20-year-old Sudiksha Konanki, a college student from Virginia, who vanished while on a spring break trip in the Dominican Republic. Konanki, who studies at the University of Pittsburgh, was last seen early on the morning of March 6 at the Riu Republica resort in Punta Cana, where she had been vacationing with five friends.
Surveillance footage from that morning shows Konanki walking toward the beach with a man wearing a tank top. The two appear to be arm-in-arm as they head in the direction of the water around 4:15 a.m. Authorities later found her clothes left on a lounge chair on the beach, but Konanki was nowhere to be found.
Dominican police believe the young student may have drowned, though no body has been recovered despite extensive search efforts by sea, air, and land. Police questioned Konanki’s friends after her disappearance, but no charges have been filed.
On March 12, the Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office in Virginia named 24-year-old Joshua Riibe as a person of interest in the case. While he hasn’t been accused of any crime, authorities are eager to speak with him. According to local media, Riibe was seen on security footage returning from the beach alone at 8:55 a.m. on the day Konanki went missing.
As the investigation continues, Konanki’s loved ones remain desperate for answers. The search efforts are ongoing, and both Dominican and U.S. officials are working together to determine what happened that night. Anyone with information is urged to contact authorities immediately.
