By Daily Mail (U.S.) | Created at 2025-03-14 18:11:37 | Updated at 2025-03-14 21:37:31
3 hours ago
The American man last seen with missing spring breaker Sudiksha Konanki refused to answer several key questions when pushed by authorities.
Joshua Riibe, 24, was seen on camera with University of Pittsburgh student Sudiksha in the early hours of March 6 at the Riu Republica Resort in Punta Cana.
Konanki's week-long disappearance has baffled officials and prompted cries from her parents to widen the frantic search for the pre-med student.
The complete transcript from Riibe's police interview has now emerged, detailing his final moments with Konanki and the chaotic aftermath to her mystery disappearance.
Riibe told cops they had kissed in the ocean before they almost got swept away by a wave. He said he saved her from drowning while almost losing consciousness.
He refused to answer some questions however, with officers probing him over how they could be sure what he was saying was truthful.
Riibe was also asked about what he told his close friend about Sudiksha and what he thought about her disappearance.
Riibe was also asked if he knew if Sudiksha was able to swim, if she made any gestures or cries in the sea, if he called the cops or told the hotel, if he had told his friends about what happened and was also asked how he felt about the situation.
To all of those questions, he said: 'My lawyers advise me not to answer that question and I follow their advice', before going silent.
Joshua Riibe, 24, was seen on camera with University of Pittsburgh student Sudiksha in the early hours of March 6
The 24-year-old said he was able to make it to shore, but Sudiksha was still wading in the water when he last saw her
The full transcript of his exchange with detectives is below.
How can we verify that everything you have said corresponds to the truth?
My lawyers advise me not to answer that question and I follow their advice.
Could you tell us what you told your friend Carter Joseph, when he asked about the missing girl Konanki – Sudiksha?
My lawyers advise me not to answer that question and I follow their advice.
What do you think about Sudiksha's disappearance?
My lawyers advise me not to answer that question and I follow their advice.
Did young Sudikscha know how to swim or not?
My lawyers advise me not to answer that question and I follow their advice.
Do you remember if young Sudikscha made any gestures or cries while she was in the sea?
My lawyers advise me not to answer that question and I follow their advice.
Did you inform the authorities or the hotel what had happened to you and the girl on the beach?
My lawyers advise me not to answer that question and I follow their advice.
Did you tell your friend what had happened with you and the girl on the beach?
My lawyers advise me not to answer that question and I follow their advice.
How do you feel about this situation?
My lawyers advise me not to answer that question and I follow their advice.
Sudiksha Konanki (pictured), 20, vanished last week. Her case has baffled officials and prompted cries from her Indian immigrant parents to widen the frantic to search
Riibe was caught on camera with the University of Pittsburgh student in the early hours of March 6 at the Riu Republica Resort
The former high school wrestling champ has not been named a suspect or a person of interest in the case, and is legally free to fly back to the US whenever he wants.
Riibe, a senior at St. Cloud State University in Minnesota, claimed he had only just met the young woman when they decided to head to the beach, according to the transcript of his interview obtained by Noticias SIN.
'We were in waist-deep water. We talked and kissed a bit,' Riibe said. 'A big wave came and hit us both. And when the water returned, it swept us out to sea. As soon as we were able to surface, we tried to call for help.'
He explained that he previously worked as a lifeguard at a swimming pool and tried to bring them both to safety when he started to feel sick.
'I was getting tired. I realized she was getting tired of swimming too. I've been a lifeguard. I grabbed her and pulled her out. I held her under my arm and swam to get her out of the water,' Riibe said.
The 24-year-old said he was able to make it to shore, but claims Sudiksha was still wading in the water when he last saw her
'It took me a long time to get her out. It was difficult. I was a lifeguard in a pool, not at sea. I was trying to get her to breathe the whole time. That didn't let me breathe the whole time and I swallowed a lot of water. I could have lost consciousness several times.'
The 24-year-old said he was able to make it to shore, but claims Sudiksha was still wading in the water when he last saw her.
'When I finally reached the ground on the beach, I held her in front of me. She wasn't out of the water, she was knee-deep and walking at an angle out the water,' he said.
'The last time I saw her, I asked if she was okay. I didn't hear her reply because I started vomiting all the water I had swallowed. After vomiting, I looked around. I didn't see anyone. I thought she had grabbed her things and left.'
He told investigators that he then passed out on the beach and did not hearing anything about Sudiksha until the next day when her friends texted his friend.
'I felt really bad and tired. I laid down on a beach chair. I fell asleep because I couldn't go far,' Riibe said.
'Then I woke up because of the sun and because mosquitoes were biting me. I went to my friend's room to get my phone and then went back to my room to sleep.'
Drones, divers, sniffer dogs and hundreds of officers have been deployed in one of the biggest searches in the history of the Dominican Republic
The somber-faced Rock Rapids, Iowa native declined to answer questions when DailyMail.com encountered him walking through the lobby with his father Mike, 46, and a police chaperone.
'I'm sorry, I can't say anything, not right now,' Riibe told DailyMail.com when we located him inside the five-star Riu Republica hotel in Punta Cana.
Riibe's distraught family said the former high school athlete 'wouldn't hurt a fly.
Josh and his dad, who flew in this week to support his son, have also been in communication with Sudiksha's distraught Indian immigrant parents Subbarayudu and Sreedevi, DailyMail.com previously revealed.
Riibe was seen on hotel CCTV with his arm draped around Sudiksha as they headed to the resort's beach around 4am last Thursday.
She made two payments via her Venmo to an unspecified user on the app on March 5, just hours before she disappeared.
The first transaction was made at 2.54pm to an unnamed 'new user,' and Konanki used a sailboat emoji to describe it.
The second was made at 3:38pm and the description was Coco Bongo, which is a renowned nightclub in Punta Cana.
The cameras spotted him walking back alone at 9.55am. Sudiksha's pals reported her missing at around 4pm.
The 'adults only' Riu Republica was still teeming with cops, soldiers and officials Thursday as the hunt for pre-med student Sudiksha entered a second week.
Drones, divers, sniffer dogs and hundreds of officers have been deployed in one of the biggest searches in the history of the Dominican Republic, assisted by the FBI and Interpol, which issued a 'yellow notice' – a global missing person alert - for the Chantilly, Virginia resident.
Government officials revealed Thursday that the search will carry on at full intensity through at least Sunday, according to Noticias SIN.
Searches are typically stood down after ten days but it could last for as long as six months in a scaled down capacity, the Dominican outlet reported.
