Days after dismissing the disappearance of 20-year-old University of Pittsburgh student Sudiksha Konanki — of Indian origin — as an accidental drowning, Dominican Republic police Thursday said they have not ruled out foul play in her disappearance as the search for her enters its seventh day. The attorney general and police in the Caribbean nation said in a release that the search for the missing co-ed now extends “beyond an accidental event” and “examines all variables.”
“We are using all our resources to thoroughly investigate the disappearance of Konanki Sudiksha Chowdary and we understand the anguish this case causes to her family, Dominicans, and Americans,” Dominican Republic Attorney General Yeni Berenice Reynoso said in a statement.
“As with any disappearance occurring under the circumstances of the case at hand, we are applying a holistic investigation protocol that examines all variables,” she said.
“The young woman’s family, as well as Dominican and American society, must be absolutely certain that we will continue to investigate until we have the response that we, the authorities, are duty-bound to guarantee.”
Interpol issued a yellow notice to wooden the search for Konanki after the Loudoun County Sheriff’s office in Virginia, where Konanki’s family lives, requested for it to assist in the investigation.
Mysterious disappearance of Sudiksha Konanki: Here’s what we know so far
The Dominican National Police said they were alerted on March 7 that the 20-year-old girl had gone missing. Konanki arrived in Punta Cana with five friends on March 3.
Police have identified Joshua Riibe, a 24-year-old tourist from Iowa, as a person of interest in the case as he was seen last with Konanki — as captured in surveillance cameras.
Konanki’s family did not accept that she had been drowned as her body had not been found even after such an intensive search for days. One possibility is that her body might have got trapped in coral reefs.
Riu Republica, the resort where Konanki was staying, reportedly experienced a 25-hour power outage in some areas of the hotel before Konanki’s disappearance. But the hotel said that the electricity was restored a full day before Konanki disappeared.
What happened on March 6?
Police said on March 6, Konanki and a group of five women and two men were seen drinking in the hotel lobby before walking to the beach around 4:15 am. Konanki, however, did not join them on the beach and stayed behind with Riibe.
A local news outlet reported that a man claimed that he and Konanki went into the water. He returned to the beach and passed out, he said. When he woke up, Konanki was not there. Some of Konanki’s clothes were found on a beach chair, the outlet reported.