Garments which are believed to belong to lacking faculty pupil Sudiksha Konanki have been discovered on a seaside chair close to the place she was final seen.
The 20-year-old faculty junior, who was staying with six feminine College of Pittsburgh college students on the Riu República Resort in Punta Cana within the Dominican Republic, was final seen strolling on a seaside on Thursday, March 6. A number of the garments she wore throughout these moments have been later discovered strewn on a close-by seaside chair, in accordance with Dominican information outlet CDN, which shared the photographs.
Simply earlier than she disappeared, Konanki was caught on surveillance footage strolling in a white swimsuit cover-up, which was later found on a white chaise lounge on the seaside, per the photographs obtained by the outlet.
CDN additionally reported that the lacking pupil’s sandals have been found close to the identical lounge chair.
Sudiksha Konanki/Fb
Sources near the investigation beforehand informed ABC Information and Dominican information outlet El Nacional that Konanki’s garments have been discovered on the seaside and there have been no indicators of violence.
Dominican police additionally confirmed to PEOPLE that garments had been discovered, although they didn’t share any extra particulars on the time.
Konanki, a resident of Loudon County, Va. and a citizen of India, was final seen on video surveillance cameras with a gaggle strolling onto the seaside round 4:15 a.m. native time on March 6, per the Dominican Republic Nationwide Police.
She was seen within the footage strolling arm-in-arm with a person, later recognized as 22-year-old faculty pupil Joshua Riibe, on her option to the seaside.
Riibe was named a “individual of curiosity,” however not a suspect. He and Konanki hung out on the seaside “kissing” previous to her disappearance, Riibe informed native authorities in an interview transcript obtained by NBC Information.
Fb
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The person — who will be the final person who noticed Konanki — informed native investigators that the pair have been “in waist-deep water, speaking and kissing a little bit,” when a wave crashed, sweeping them each “out to sea,” per the outlet.
“I saved attempting to get her to breathe, however that didn’t enable me to breathe on a regular basis, and I swallowed a number of water,” he claimed.
Riibe, who’s at the moment detained on the Riu República amid the lacking individual case, additionally informed investigators he obtained himself and Konanki again to shore safely, and mentioned, “The final time I noticed her, I requested if she was okay,” however when he didn’t hear or see her, “thought she’d grabbed her issues and left.”
After Konanki’s classmates reported her lacking, Dominican Nationwide Police mentioned an “exhaustive search was launched by sea, air and land” to seek out her. Dominican authorities say they consider that she drowned, per an earlier report from ABC Information, although her physique has not been recovered.
Konanki’s household beforehand informed USA In the present day that they’re “going by an extremely tough time” and “are deeply saddened” in her absence.
“We kindly request privateness as we address this difficult second collectively,” the household’s assertion concluded.