Joshua Riibe is currently being question in the disapperance of Sudiksha Konaki
According to a recently made public video, Joshua Riibe, a person of interest in the investigation of missing University of Pittsburgh student Sudiksha Konanki, was at the same outdoor bar as her prior to her disappearance from a Punta Cana beach.
There is no interaction between Joshua Riibe and Sudiksha Konanki in the videos, which were obtained by the local publication Noticia SIN. In one video, 20-year-old Konanki is seen mingling with pals at a resort bar. At one point, Konanki, wearing a white dress, is seen covering her mouth with her hand before apologizing and moving a few steps away to appear to throw up.
Who is Joshua Steven Riibe of Iowa, last seen with missing Sudiksha Konanki in Dominican Republic, bio, age, family, parents, college and high school
She comes to the pub shortly after, seems to bounce with excitement, and gives one of her female pals a hug.
Joshua Riibe is studying land surveying at the St. Cloud State University in Minnesota. He is also a lifeguard at a swimming pool.
Riibe, 24, a tourist from Iowa and a St. Cloud University final-year student, remains under police supervision and has undergone hours long questioning and officials have retained his passport until further notice.
Konanki, a 20-year-old pre-medical student from Vrigina, was on a vacation with her friends at the Riu Republic Resort in Punta Cana when she went missing on March 6 and Joshua Steven Riibe is the last person known to have seen Sudiksha Konanki before she disappeared in Punta Cana.
On March 5, Konanki and her friends went to the beach at approximately 4.15 am after having a good time at a resort nightclub in Punta Cana and Konanki and Riibe were alone on the beach at 5.50 am, as most of her friends had left.
Riibe’s parents, Albert and Tina, have meanwhile criticised the treatment of their son, saying he has been subjected to “irregular conditions” and repeated questioning without legal counsel until March 12.
Riibe, originally from Rock Rapids, Iowa, was a former wrestler and football player at Central Lyon High School. He is currently a senior at St. Cloud State University in Minnesota and had gone to the Dominican Republic for a spring break trip and was staying at the same resort as Konanki.
Riibe told the police that when he woke up, Konanki was missing but its unclear whether Riibe and Konanki knew each other before meeting on the island.
‼️Iowa Student Joshua Riibe Linked to the disappearance of the brilliant Pitt Pre-Med Star Sudiksha Konanki in Dominican Republic! pic.twitter.com/Iy8PF0T6b5
— i Expose Racists & Pedos (@SeeRacists) March 15, 2025
Riibe has been active in school activities, sports, and charity work, and his family has described him as a “kind, humorous, and community-driven young man,” according to ABC News. He met Konanki the night before she vanished, but he was not initially a member of her travel party.
Investigators were informed by Joshua Riibe that he was with Sudiksha Konanki the night she vanished. Joshua Riibe claimed that they were “in waist-deep water, talking and kissing a little” when a powerful wave dragged them out to sea, as per a transcript that NBC News was able to get.
As he swam back to shore, Riibe, a certified pool lifeguard, said he attempted to keep Ms. Konanki under his arm so she could breathe. With difficulty, he said, “I took in a lot of water.”
The fact that #SudikshaKonanki’s clothing was left behind strongly suggests in my opinion, she may have never made it out of the water at all. #JoshuaRiibe either doesn’t remember that she drowned, is embellishing details to make himself look like a hero, or has no involvement… pic.twitter.com/BnitXgQajE
— 𝕏 🕵🏻♀️🦋L̤̮E̤̮G̤̮🅰️C̤̮Y̤̮🦋🕵🏻♀️ 𝕏 (@iamlegacy23) March 16, 2025
Riibe positioned Konanki in front of him as they approached shallower waters and observed her “walking at an angle in the water.” He last inquired about her well-being, but he didn’t hear her answer because he started throwing up the seawater he had consumed.
Konanki vanished by the time he recovered. On a beach lounger, Riibe fainted, thinking she had gone. Hours later, surveillance footage showed him going back to his hotel by himself.
To find Sudiksha Konanki, authorities, including the FBI, have begun a massive search that includes the use of all-terrain vehicles, boats, scuba divers, drones, and helicopters. Dominican authorities acknowledge that the likelihood of discovering her alive is “minimal.” Authorities believe Konanki drowned, but her family thinks she might have been abducted. Officials have been encouraged to broaden the probe by her father.
Joshua Riibe, Iowa student, has been named as a person of interest in the disappearance of Sudiksha, the Pitt pre-med student who went missing in the Dominican Republic as search efforts expand. #Missing#PuntaCana #SudikshaKonanki pic.twitter.com/bDnxPyTRcT
— Jennifer Coffindaffer (@CoffindafferFBI) March 12, 2025