Person Of Interest Identified In Case Of Missing College Student From VA

LOUDOUN COUNTY, VA — As the search continues for missing college student Sudiksha Konanki from Loudoun County, authorities have identified a person of interest in her disappearance in the Dominican Republic.

As reported by People magazine, the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office confirmed Joshua Riibe as a person of interest. He is not officially a suspect facing charges.

A source close to the investigation told DailyMail.com that Riibe, a former high school wrestler from Iowa, was the last person to see Konanki on a beach in Punta Cana before she vanished on March 6. According to the Daily Mail, Dominican authorities currently are in possession of his passport.

"Sheriff [Michael] Chapman wants to make sure the investigation is comprehensive and includes all possible assets and techniques," Loudoun Sheriff’s Office spokesman Thomas Julia told Fox News Digital. "We are working closely with the FBI on all of this, and they are working with the Dominican National Police."

Konanki, from Chantilly, is a citizen of India and a permanent U.S. resident studying pre-medicine at the University of Pittsburgh. She had been on a trip with five friends since March 3, according to Dominican National Police.

Julia told Fox News that Riibe "has been interviewed at length," but said the investigation is "still a missing person case, not a criminal case."

Dominican Republic police said Konanki was last spotted around 4:15 a.m. on March 6 with her friends on the beach in front of the Riu República Hotel in Punta Cana. In a statement sent to the Associated Press, the hotel said Konanki’s disappearance coincided with a power outage that prompted multiple guests to head to the beach.

CNN reported on Monday that around 5:55 a.m. on March 6, surveillance cameras captured five women and one man leaving a Punta Cana beach. Konanki stayed behind with a man. Video shows the man leaving the beach area at 9:55 a.m. with no sign of Konanki.

A record of complaint sought by the missing student's family said she left behind personal items like her phone and wallet. Konanki's clothes were discovered on a portable beach bed near the beach where she went missing. Police have found no evidence of violence.

According to the New York Post, Riibe provided police with several versions of what unfolded when he and Konanki remained on the beach. In his first version, he recalled throwing up from the rough waters and asking Konanki if she was alright.

In another version, he reported feeling sick and leaving the water. He saw Konanki in the water before he passed out.

In the third version, he recalled Konanki walking on the beach before he passed out.

While authorities previously speculated that Konanki may have drowned, the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office said there was no confirmation that drowning was the cause of her disappearance. The search for Konanki has involved a widespread search of the area, interviews of people with Konanki before she went missing, and reviews of surveillance footage of Konanki and her college friends.

Anyone with information in the case may contact the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office at 703-777-1021. Anonymous tips can be submitted to Loudoun Crime Solvers at 703-777-1919.

The Associated Press and Patch editor Eric Heyl contributed to this report.