PA College Student Disappears In Dominican Republic

PITTSBURGH, PA — Authorities are interviewing the last person believed to have been seen with a missing University of Pittsburgh student who disappeared in the Dominican Republic last week while on spring break.

Sudiksha Konanki was last seen Thursday in Punta Cana. Authorities are investigating whether she might have drowned, ABC News reported on Sunday.

Konanki, 20, of Ashburn, Virginia, was one of six University of Pittsburgh students on the trip, according to the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office in Virginia, which noted two of the students are Loudoun County residents and Konanki is a citizen of India.

CNN reported on Monday that around 5:55 a.m. Thursday, surveillance cameras captured five women and one man leaving a Punta Cana beach. Konanki is believed to have stayed behind with a young man. Video shows the man leaving the beach area at 9:55 a.m. with no sign of Konanki. The record of complaint sought by the missing student's loved ones said she left behind personal items like her phone and wallet.

Authorities have interviewed that young man to determine what happened when the two were alone, the source said, and Dominican Police are broadening their investigation to corroborate his preliminary version, according to CNN.

The Loudoun County Sheriff's Office was contacted Thursday evening about Konanki's disappearance and has since been in communication with federal authorities and officials in the Dominican Republic, according to the agency. The embassy of India in the Dominican Republic has taken the lead in working with authorities on the ground, the sheriff's office said.

"Our office is supporting those efforts and continuing to investigate locally," according to the sheriff's office.