{"id":38814,"date":"2025-03-19T22:22:38","date_gmt":"2025-03-19T22:22:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/demo4.dedicatedhost247.com\/news\/american-last-to-see-missing-pitt-student-alive-has-left-the-dominican-republic\/"},"modified":"2025-03-19T22:22:38","modified_gmt":"2025-03-19T22:22:38","slug":"american-last-to-see-missing-pitt-student-alive-has-left-the-dominican-republic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/demo4.dedicatedhost247.com\/news\/american-last-to-see-missing-pitt-student-alive-has-left-the-dominican-republic\/","title":{"rendered":"American last to see missing Pitt student alive has left the Dominican Republic"},"content":{"rendered":"


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SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic \u2014\u00a0An American who was the last person believed to have been seen with missing University of Pittsburgh student\u00a0Sudiksha Konanki<\/a> boarded a plane and took off from the Dominican Republic on Wednesday, nearly two weeks after he said authorities forced him to stay in the Caribbean nation and confiscated his passport.<\/p>\n

Joshua Riibe, a senior at St. Cloud State University in Minnesota, was the last person believed to have been seen with Konanki on the morning she disappeared, March 6. <\/p>\n

On Wednesday evening, NBC News spotted Riibe at Las Am\u00e9ricas International Airport in Santo Domingo, the nation\u2019s capital. <\/p>\n

He was with a man who Riibe’s attorney’s have identified as his father. They were accompanied by a woman at the check in area who stayed behind as they went through the security screening.\u00a0<\/p>\n

NBC News spotted an airport employee assisting in boarding.<\/p>\n

Riibe’s departure ends what his attorneys allege was a days-long detainment in the Dominican Republic as investigators questioned him in connection with Konanki\u2019s\u00a0disappearance.<\/p>\n

\"Joshua<\/picture>
Joshua Riibe walks with lawyers into court in Hig\u00fcey, Dominican Republic, on Tuesday.<\/span>Dayanira Carpio via AP<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Riibe, 22, has been kept under police supervision at the hotel where Konanki was staying on a spring break trip when she vanished, according to Riibe and his attorneys. Riibe’s passport was also confiscated by local authorities, they said. <\/p>\n

Riibe has not been charged with a crime\u00a0nor have any suspects been named in Konanki\u2019s disappearance, according to the Dominican Republic National Police.<\/p>\n

His departure comes a day after a Dominican judge ruled<\/a> that he was no longer required to be under police supervision. <\/p>\n

Riibe would have needed to go to\u00a0the U.S. Embassy in Santo Domingo to obtain an emergency U.S. passport<\/a>\u00a0in the country.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe US Embassy is in communication with him and his family and his lawyer, and we are providing consular assistance as well,\u201d State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said at a briefing Wednesday before Riibe\u2019s departure.<\/p>\n

NBC News reached out to Riibe\u2019s attorneys, Dominican Republic National Police and the country\u2019s Attorney General about Riibe\u2019s departure. <\/p>\n

The attorney general replied: “I cannot confirm that information.” The other parties have not yet responded.<\/p>\n

\"Sudiksha<\/picture>
Sudiksha Konanki.<\/span>Obtained by NBC News<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Konanki’s disappearance has captivated widespread attention in recent weeks. <\/p>\n

Konanki, a junior at the University of Pittsburgh, was on spring break with five friends at a beach resort in Punta Cana when she went missing in the early hours of March 6. That morning, her friends returned to the hotel from the beach, but Konanki stayed behind with people she met from the trip, authorities said.<\/p>\n

Riibe, who is from Rock Rapids, Iowa, told local investigators in an interview<\/a>\u00a0last week that he was on the beach with Konanki shortly before she disappeared, according to a transcript of the interview obtained by NBC News.<\/p>\n

The transcript states that Riibe and Konanki were \u201cin waist-deep water, talking and kissing a little\u201d before a wave crashed, taking them both \u201cout to sea.\u201d<\/p>\n

Police have said they found no signs of violence at the beach. A spokesperson for the hotel where Konanki was staying also said that red flags, which indicate \u201cthat the sea had a strong current and very high waves,\u201d\u00a0were flying on the morning she went missing. <\/p>\n

Speaking with reporters outside of their home in Loudoun County, Virginia, Konanki’s parents said that they\u2019ve given up hope that their daughter is still alive.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are coming to terms with the fact that our daughter has drowned,\u201d Konanki\u2019s father, Subbarayudu Konanki, said through tears. \u201cThis is incredibly difficult for us to process.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

The parents called on local police to declare their daughter dead<\/a> earlier in the week. Konanki’s father added Tuesday that they came to reason that their daughter drowned based off of the information U.S. and local authorities gave them.<\/p>\n

\u201cBoth sides of the authorities have shown us how high the ocean waves were at the time of [the] incident,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd\u00a0both sides of the authorities also clarified that the person of interest is not suspect from the beginning.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Jesse Kirsch<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n
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Jesse Kirsch is a correspondent based in Miami reporting across all NBC News and MSNBC platforms.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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\"\"<\/picture><\/a><\/div>\n

Matt Lavietes<\/a><\/span><\/a><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

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Matt Lavietes is a reporter for NBC News.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Debra Jones<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n
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Debra Jones is a producer for\u00a0NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Carlos Catire<\/span><\/p>\n
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Carlos Catire is an NBC News producer.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Alexandra Bacallao contributed.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n


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