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PUNTA CANA, Dominican Republic – A key witness in connection with American college student Sudiksha Konanki’s disappearance told Dominican Republic police that he and the 20-year-old University of Pittsburgh student were swimming when a big wave hit them, and they were swept away, according to a translation of a transcript shared with Fox News.
Joshua Riibe of Iowa completed a nearly four-hour interview on Wednesday with Dominican Republic police as a witness in connection with Konanki’s disappearance and answered more than 50 questions about what happened before she vanished on March 6. Riibe is being considered by Dominican authorities as a witness in the case, not as a person of interest or suspect.
Riibe allegedly refused to answer eight questions, including his thoughts on the disappearance and why he did not tell the hotel or authorities about the incident. Police have said there are no suspects and this is a missing person case, not a criminal case. Riibe, 24, told police that he met Konanki that night, as they were both staying at the RIU Republica resort for spring break.
Riibe’s lawyer, Beatriz Santana, declined to comment on the case or her client’s interviews with police. Riibe’s family also issued a statement, saying, “At this point in time, Our Family is going through a very difficult time right now, and we’re experiencing a lot of sadness and pain. We kindly ask for privacy as we navigate this challenging moment together… We appreciate your cooperation and understanding.”
Sudiksha Konanki in a Facebook selfie photo. The 20-year-old University of Pittsburgh junior has been missing since March 6, when she vanished during a spring break trip to a five-star resort in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic. (Sudiksha Konanki/Facebook)
“I thought she had gone to her room. Her friends texted my friend since he had one of their numbers,” Riibe said.
The Iowa man said his friends went to the beach the next day and found his “belongings” because he “never picked them up,” other than a pair of shoes and a room key that he said “someone had stolen.”
Exterior view of a police station at Punta Cana, Dominican Republic. (Kirill Clark)
Riibe told police he had been drinking vodka with 7Up and tequila shots, adding that the group of women he had been with purchased “pink tequila shots” that they drank as a group.
He did not answer eight questions on the advice of his attorneys, according to the transcript, including the following:
1. How can we verify that everything you have said is true?
2. What did you tell your friend when he asked about the missing girl, Konanki-Sudiksha?
3. What do you think about Sudiksha’s disappearance?
4. Did Sudiksha know how to swim or not?
5. Do you remember if Sudiksha made any gestures or screamed while in the sea?
6. Did you inform the authorities or the hotel about what happened with you and the girl on the beach?
7. Did you tell your friend what happened between you and the girl on the beach?
8. How do you feel about this situation?
Beach loungers sit on the sand by the sea at the RIU Republica Resort in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, Tuesday, March 11, 2025. Konanki, 20, was last seen on March 6 on a beach outside the five-star RIU Republica Resort in the Dominican Republic. (Santiago Baez for Fox News Digital)
The Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office in Virginia, where Konanki lives, has said Riibe “is not a person of interest nor a suspect for purposes of a criminal investigation. This was initiated as and is still a missing person investigation, and for that purpose he is a person of interest to our agency.”
The Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office told Fox News Digital on Friday it spoke with Riibe on Thursday.
“Detectives from the Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office (LCSO) conducted an extensive interview with Mr. Joshua Riibe on Thursday afternoon, March 13, 2025. His father and attorney accompanied Mr. Riibe, and he was cooperative. The search and investigation by the Dominican National Police are continuing. The LCSO does not plan to have any further updates today,” a spokesperson said.
Riibe’s family said in a statement: “At this point in time, Our Family is going through a very difficult time right now, and we’re experiencing a lot of sadness and pain. We kindly ask for privacy as we navigate this challenging moment together… We appreciate your cooperation and understanding.”
Military personnel search for Sudiksha Konanki, a University of Pittsburgh student from the U.S. who disappeared on a beach in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, Monday, March 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Francesco Spotorno)
In January, four tourists drowned near Punta Cana, when a red flag warned of strong currents and rough seas, according to The Associated Press.
Konanki was last seen on surveillance footage walking from RIU Republica to the beach with seven other people, including five females and two males, around 4:15 a.m. on March 6. She was last seen on the beach around 4:50 a.m., according to the Dominican Republic prosecutor’s office and the hotel.
Hotel surveillance footage then shows a group of six people, including five women and one man, returning to the hotel from the beach around 5:55 a.m.
The young man previously seen with Konanki is seen on surveillance footage entering the interior of the hotel around 9 a.m. on March 6.
Authorities are asking anyone with information to contact the Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office at 703-777-1021. To remain anonymous, call the Loudoun Crime Solvers at 703-777-1919.
