A person of interest has been named in the disappearance of college student Sudiksha Konanki, who went missing while on vacation in the Dominican Republic.
Loudon County Sheriff's Office named 24-year-old Joshua Riibe as a person of interest. Konanki went missing on Marhc 6 while vacationing in Punta Cana. However, the sheriff stressed that Joshua is not a suspect and this isn't a criminal case. It said, "This is not at this time a criminal case, which would be different."
Meanwhile, Konanki's father asked authorities to expand the search for her after search and rescue failed to find her body. Authorities assumed the college student drowned. But her father wants them to consider that his daughter may have been abducted or kidnapped.
"Her belongings, including personal items like her phone and wallet, were left with her friends, which is unusual because she always carried her phone with her," the complaint read.
Sudiksha Konanki Still Missing
After felling to find Konanki, authorities are interviewing people to try to find new details about her disappearance.
"As part of this process, the [National Police] are re-interviewing targeted individuals who were in the victim's proximity at the time of her disappearance," police investigators said in a news release. "This includes hotel employees where Konanki and her companions were staying, with the goal of gathering information to corroborate her movements, interactions, and any relevant details for the investigation."
"We are concerned," Abinader said Monday. "All government agencies are searching ... because the latest information we have from one of them, from the last person who was with the young woman, what he says according to the reports is that a wave, while on the beach, crashed into them."
The Loudoun County Sheriff's Office said Konanki's friends have remained in the country to search for their friend.
"It's my understanding they were supposed to return today, but I think they're being held longer there for additional questioning," said Loudoun County Sheriff Mike Chapman."Everybody's kind of working through this right now. There's a lot of folks that are involved, so we want to make sure that before we put any information out, that we get it absolutely right."
Meanwhile, a Pitt representative weighed in on the disappearance of Konanki, who is a student there.
"University officials are in contact with Sudiksha Konanki's family as well as authorities in Loudoun County, Virginia, and we have offered our full support in their efforts to find her and bring her home safely," a university spokesperson said over the weekend. "Anyone with information is urged to contact the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office at 703-777-1021."
