Joshua Riibe—the last person seen with missing University of Pittsburgh student Sudiksha Konanki—has been detained once again, this time in Puerto Rico, while trying to return to the U.S. due to an issue with his travel documents.
Riibe, originally from Iowa, was stopped by airport officials at Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport as he attempted to board a connecting flight back home. According to Noticias SIN, authorities flagged his temporary travel documents issued in the Dominican Republic because they hadn’t been properly stamped.
His father, Albert Riibe, expressed visible frustration when speaking to the press. “I’m just a dad whose son was taken from him… We’ve just spent two weeks trying to stay together,” he said at the airport.
This most recent hold-up comes shortly after a Dominican judge gave Riibe the green light to leave the country. Following a nearly five-hour court session on Tuesday, Judge Elvis Delgado ruled that the 22-year-old could return to the U.S.
Previously, Dominican authorities had seized Riibe’s passport and restricted his movements, repeatedly questioning him in connection with Konanki’s disappearance.
During the court hearing, Riibe emotionally pleaded with the judge. “I just want to go home, see my family, hug them, tell them I miss them,” he said, according to Noticias SIN. “I know I’m here to help, but it’s been ten days—I can’t stay anymore.”
Despite being named a person of interest by officials in Loudoun County, Virginia—where Konanki’s family resides—Riibe has not been charged with any crime, and Dominican authorities have not labeled him a suspect.
The Night Sudiksha Konanki Disappeared
Sudiksha Konanki, 20, was last seen around 4:15 a.m. on March 6, walking toward the beach at the RIU Hotel and Resort in Punta Cana. She was vacationing on spring break with friends, and security footage captured her linking arms with Riibe as part of a group heading to the water, per The Mirror US.
Surveillance later showed most of the group leaving the beach around 5:55 a.m.—but Riibe was seen returning to the hotel alone, without Konanki.
In the days since, her heartbroken parents have asked officials to declare her deceased, saying they believe she was pulled under by strong ocean waves. They’ve also made it clear they don’t believe Riibe had anything to do with her disappearance.
“Both U.S. and Dominican officials explained how high the waves were at the time, and both confirmed that the person of interest was never seen as a suspect,” her father, Subbarayudu Konanki, said in a statement to The New York Post.
“It breaks our hearts to say this, but we believe our daughter drowned,” he added.
Riibe’s Version of Events
Riibe, a student at St. Cloud State in Minnesota, told investigators that he and Konanki had been drinking and kissing in waist-deep water when a powerful tide dragged them farther out. As a former lifeguard, he said he managed to get her back to shore, but after throwing up from exhaustion, he assumed she had collected her things and gone back. He said he was stunned to find out she was missing.
Yet private investigator T.J. Ward—known for working on the Natalie Holloway case—told NewsNation Now he doesn’t believe drowning is what happened.
“I don’t think she drowned. I believe something else occurred,” Ward said. “It’s too soon to conclude that she drowned.”
Ward, who spent 18 years on the Holloway case, said he’s now offered his services to Konanki’s mother and plans to stay involved.
“This case isn’t closing anytime soon. Not until there’s real evidence to move forward,” he stated. “And I still think there’s more to the story.”
Dominican investigators have questioned over 50 individuals connected to the case, and while Riibe has been repeatedly interviewed, officials insist he was never officially detained—only considered a witness.
Albert Riibe has spoken out about the lengthy ordeal. “Enough,” he reportedly told the judge. “It’s been 12 days.”
In the end, Judge Delgado approved Riibe’s release, stating plainly, “The law is the law.”
As the investigation presses on, Konanki’s family continues to search for answers—while coming to terms with a tragic loss they never imagined.