DR, Sudiksha Konanki, 20, Punta Cana, 6 March 2025

[imstilla.grandma]

 

[Warwick7]

Authorities reenact events in disappearance of tourist Sudiksha Konanki

<p>Punta Cana.- Around 2:00 a.m., authorities conducted a reenactment of the events leading to the disappearance of Indian tourist Sudiksha Konanki at the Riu República hotel in Punta Cana. The investigation focused on Joshua Steven Riibe, the last person seen with Konanki. Riibe was taken to...

dominicantoday.com

Punta Cana.- Around 2:00 a.m., authorities conducted a reenactment of the events leading to the disappearance of Indian tourist Sudiksha Konanki at the Riu República hotel in Punta Cana. The investigation focused on Joshua Steven Riibe, the last person seen with Konanki. Riibe was taken to the beach to provide a chronological account of the events on March 6, helping authorities gather crucial details for the investigation, according to N Digital.

Good!!
Bam!!!
That is what needed to be done.

 

[mickey2942]

I know this much, I doubt he still has a girlfriend at home.

Joshua Riibe speaks out after being named as person of interest

Joshua Riibe, 22, was the last person seen with the 20-year-old University of Pittsburgh junior before she went missing from the Riu Republica Resort in Punta Cana in the early hours of March 6.

www.dailymail.co.uk

 

[whitelilac]

I had to look up exactly what a Habeas Corpus is:
"- a writ requiring a person under arrest to be brought before a judge or into court, especially to secure the person's release unless lawful grounds are shown for their detention. "

 

[NoeticSoul]

News reports currently breaking that JR's attorney has filed a writ of Habeas Corpus and there will be a hearing Tuesday. (Edited to correct day of hearing.)

Joshua Steven Riibe’s attorneys file Habeas Corpus petition

<p>La Altagracia.- Joshua Steven Riibe’s attorneys have filed a habeas corpus petition seeking his release in connection with the investigation into the disappearance of Sudiksha Konanki. According to sources from Noticias SIN, a hearing for the petition is scheduled for Tuesday at 2:00 p.m...

dominicantoday.com

Good. Smart that he has an attorney to prevent any type of false confessions being coerced at least.

 

[NoviceCrimeWatcher]

A couple of things:

Could the inconsistencies be warning signs? It's possible they found his things in a strange spot that doesn't match his account. Similarly, her items might have been found in a location that contradicts his narrative. I'm still puzzled by the fact that her belongings weren't discovered until eight days later; that just seems bizarre to me.

I'm also struggling to accept the idea that two people, waist-deep in the ocean and intoxicated in the dark, could be hit by a massive wave that knocked them down and swept them out to sea, yet somehow, he managed to find her, and rescue her to shore (or close to it). Does that really seem believable?

 

[Wanderingstarsearch]

I haven't seen anything in the news/media about other potential witnesses other than JR who would have been at that beach during that four hours that JR and SK were there and she went missing. I hope they have been able to contact other guests or people who were there and possibly saw something of significance.

 

[Himako14]

Yes to the pool lifeguard experience being totally different from ocean lifeguard. No the the BBM, IMO. Not that it could not have happened for some other reason, but that is never taught in lifeguard class, at least it wasn't included in my training when I took my first one in 1996 for a pool and never in any class I have taken pool or ocean since. It is just way too dangerous for everyone. Again, based on my experience. He would not have done that on purpose for the sake of a rescue. Could have done it horsing around though.

Checked with my uncle, who told me about dunking them. He was a lifeguard at a small pool back in the 70s and 80s, and may not have been a certified lifeguard. I hadn’t learned it in my classes in 2000 or after, but I’ve seen my dad and uncle both do it when they were doing rescues at the beach.

I’m not sure about SK but I don’t allow anyone but my family to dunk me, even horse playing around. I had a now-former friend hold me under for too long once. Would SK horseplay like that, and would she allow someone she didn’t know that well to do it? If not, then I could see her attempting to fight back.

 

[BOBON]

I am wondering if JR can have early phase of Korsakoff’s syndrome, alcohol-related memory loss related mostly to the deficiency of vitamin B1 (thiamine). In a way, alcohol-related brain impairment might start much sooner than Korsakoff’s, but confabulations are typical. It is remembering snippets of what had happened and the brain filling in the rest with “tales” to make a coherent story. Having thought about the case, I came to a conclusion that it could be what we might be seeing here. All i know is that alcohol-related cognitive impairment might start years before it is diagnosed.

Could Riibe be confabulating?

Confabulation - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

Korsakoff syndrome

Learn about symptoms, treatments, and causes, including alcohol misuse, and how this memory disorder relates to Wernicke encephalopathy.

www.alz.org

He almost drowned, it's fair to assume he had effects of post-drowning that are hallucinations/confusion mixed with being drunk

 

[Ghostwheel]

A couple of things:

Could the inconsistencies be warning signs? It's possible they found his things in a strange spot that doesn't match his account. Similarly, her items might have been found in a location that contradicts his narrative. I'm still puzzled by the fact that her belongings weren't discovered until eight days later; that just seems bizarre to me.

I'm also struggling to accept the idea that two people, waist-deep in the ocean and intoxicated in the dark, could be hit by a massive wave that knocked them down and swept them out to sea, yet somehow, he managed to find her, and rescue her to shore (or close to it). Does that really seem believable?

Jumping off this post, but "swept out to sea" can mean different things to different people. Can't touch bottom, can't stay upright, need to swim back in from where you end up, a mile and a half out. In a not swept out to sea anecdote, my 8 yo D and I ended up over a mile out from shore while snorkeling once because the shelf on the way out was a shallow descent, then it just dropped off. When it dropped off, we stuck our heads up to look and realized how far out we were. (she is a fish, btw). It is an example of how relative "out to sea" can be. For us, we turned around and went back in because no rough waves or anything, but even then it took a while to get back.

Wrap up is that if a wave hit them and they were pulled back enough that feet no longer hit bottom, that can feel like "swept out to sea" and fighting a current while drunk could feel like a long distance. Fighting an outbound wave pull sober can feel like a long distance.

I'm also unclear why there is a perception that when a wave hits two people, they are so separated as to not be able to locate each other, dark or no. Unless one goes under and just does not come up at all, you can hear the person you were with. They don't end up a quarter mile away from you with a single wave pull.

"A big wave came and hit us both, then the tide pulled us into the ocean," he told the prosecutor. "When we surfaced, we tried to plead for help, but there was no one there.""

This, to me, means a wave came in, knocked them over, pulls them to the ocean, they could not touch bottom. Heads come up, probably right next to each other or no more than a few yards away from each other, he called for help, saw no one, then grabbed her and came in, fighting more waves doing their thing. (if what he says is true. It does actually make sense).

Having done this kind of thing, though I was sober and the people I was helping were drunk, none of his story sounds off to me, with the exception of not knowing where she ended up at the end, but I've never been drunk, so I can't speak to that. I can speak to my own coughing and throwing up after taking on sea water and I can speak to my friends throwing up and passing out after being pulled out of the ocean, so it does make sense to me. Or at least it does not set off my hinkey meter.

I don't know what he did to try and track her down the next day, though. That is the part that makes a difference to me.

 

[Dee10]

Search for US student in Dominican Republic intensifies

PUNTA CANA, Dominican Republic (AP) — The search for a U.S. college student who went missing in the Dominican Republic intensified on Monday, one day after a man questioned by authorities visited the beach where she was last seen and spoke with officials.

ca.news.yahoo.com

They stated they were looking also on land. There is a lot of thick jungle area around at least part of the resort. Maybe he has scratches on him or maybe they have his shirt and shoes like I wondered earlier. I believe they will get to the bottom of whatever happened, with there determination.

I read earlier today, the 4 other people who drowned in January were all found within 48 hours.

 

[Diddian]

Search for US student in Dominican Republic intensifies

PUNTA CANA, Dominican Republic (AP) — The search for a U.S. college student who went missing in the Dominican Republic intensified on Monday, one day after a man questioned by authorities visited the beach where she was last seen and spoke with officials.

ca.news.yahoo.com

They stated they were looking also on land. There is a lot of thick jungle area around at least part of the resort. Maybe he has scratches on him or maybe they have his shirt and shoes like I wondered earlier. I believe they will get to the bottom of whatever happened, with there determination.

I read earlier today, the 4 other people who drowned in January were all found within 48 hours.

View attachment 571696

SK was wearing bracelets, an anklet, and a pair of earrings that contained metal. If her body were to have been concealed and she was still wearing those, I presume metal detection could help in locating her remains...?

That said, if those were removed, they would be no help. When JR returned to the hotel at 9:55 in the morning, his left hand is in the pocket of his shorts/swim trunks and it does appear (from shadows, folds in the fabric below the shadows indicating his fingers) that something might be in that pocket but it is hard to say. Could be pixilation of the surveillance photos.

Photo from this DM article.

Family of wrestling star last to see Sudiksha Konanki alive speak out

The family of 22-year-old Josh Riibe, questioned by police as he was the last person to see Sudiksha Konanki alive at a Punta Cana resort, insists it's not in his nature to harm anyone.

www.dailymail.co.uk

 

[Only4Justice]

black out drunk...there is a small chance that someone nabbed her on the way back to the hotel...they need to recreate in order to see where they could take her and be concealed from camera's etc.
if there are no working cameras in that area then they need to find out how it could have happened if she was abducted and re-search that hotel...and once again how do we know they were always on that beach? what if her body is in the hotel? I know I keep saying this but it sounds like the whole resort was in chaos and the hotel is ginormous. mOO

I find it hard to believe that they haven’t already searched the entire resort for her. Has anyone here anything about that!?

I am catching up - was there a press conference today?

TIA. She needs to be found!

 

[Charlot123]

After viewing the footage from the nightclub bar, it’s obvious that Josh was extremely drunk and affected. He can barely stand stable and it’s apparent that he vomited several times. Sudiksha on the other hand who appears under the influence seemed less affected from the alcohol at this point. She’s shown hugging a friend and able to walk without stumbling. Does anyone know how much time passed from Josh and Sudiksha in the nightclub to when they ended up on the beach? I’ve seen comments that Sudiksha also puked but in the lobby of the hotel. If so, did that occur prior to the nightclub bar footage or after? It’s my opinion that if the beach visit came directly after Josh puking at the bar, there is no way that he would be responsible for anything nefarious involving Sudiksha. Josh was completely out of commission! My immediate feeling is that this is a horrible drowning due to drunkenness, but I also can’t help wonder if either one of their beverages had been laced?? On a sidenote, I’ve overindulged quite a few times in my youth, but when the puking began, the party was over. I definitely can’t imagine myself ever puking and then making out with someone….Thats a strange one even under the influence.

My feeling is, Josh was probably in phase 2 of alcoholism. Definitely not phase 1, experimenting.

Four Stages of Alcoholism and Early Detection | SUN Behavioral Houston

Knowing the 4 Stages of Alcoholism Can Press the Reset Button With Alcohol Use Disorder

sunhouston.com

Phase 2 happens when liver enzymes degrading alcohol get “trained”. People are not dependent yet, they can totally stop it for long time without experiencing any side effects, but…I once watched a group of several people in stage 2 drinking. Interesting experience. In the moment between Metaxa+local 60-proof beverage and running to the next store for the beer, one of women got tipsy. She got under a cold shower, explaining to me that “she didn’t like it when alcohol gets to her head.” That totally sobered her up and she continued.

What I didn’t do was returning back to that house in the morning to check what they remembered of the conversation (there were two nondrinkers there, the husband of one woman and myself, so we spoke and they provided a lot of information).

This is stage 2. They totally stop drinking when there is yard work period, or such. They don’t struggle from it. No dependency.

My opinion: it is stage 2 in Josh R, and while he doesn’t struggle from it (goes to school, makes the decisions), the amount gets to his brain and causes confabulations. His stories probably don’t match, but it is not intentional. It is the function of his brain. Someone has to get a good history of his alcohol use, and he has to be honest. Also, what was the pattern of alcohol consumption in his family.

We are assuming that we are dealing with a good witness whose stories don’t match, but I am beginning to think that he is a poor witness and it is his brain that restores the events poorly.

JMO. Wishing Sudiksha’s parents to get the answers about their daughter. Such a sad story.

 

[Emi]

 

[whitelilac]

Search for US student in Dominican Republic intensifies

PUNTA CANA, Dominican Republic (AP) — The search for a U.S. college student who went missing in the Dominican Republic intensified on Monday, one day after a man questioned by authorities visited the beach where she was last seen and spoke with officials.

ca.news.yahoo.com

They stated they were looking also on land. There is a lot of thick jungle area around at least part of the resort. Maybe he has scratches on him or maybe they have his shirt and shoes like I wondered earlier. I believe they will get to the bottom of whatever happened, with there determination.

I read earlier today, the 4 other people who drowned in January were all found within 48 hours.

View attachment 571696

I personally don't believe she is on land. With so many people at that resort, someone would have detected an odor.
Not just that, but IF Joshua harmed her, he'd be much "safer" if she was out to sea, where the probability would be that she drowned.

Besides, I don't believe he intentionally harmed her.

Ofcourse there's always Bruce Beresford Redman's case, where he killed his wife in their room in Cancun. She was found in a sewer on the grounds. Probably too risky to drag her from their room to the ocean.

 

[Gemmie]

I just heard the news and I'm sure I'm not the only one that felt this case has Natalee Holloway vibes. Just ugh. I hope I'm wrong and she's found fine but if I was a better person, I wouldn't bet on that outcome. I will still hope and pray that my initial reaction to the news was wrong. Please be wrong.

 

[CityKid]

I don't know what he did to try and track her down the next day, though. That is the part that makes a difference to me.

Snipped for emphasis. That's one thing that doesn't strike me as odd. We don't know if she goes by a nickname. It's doubtful he knew her surname at all. I don't believe any hotel would allow a guest to check if another guest who's not part of their group was in their room. I don't know how he would be able to check up on her. All he knows (if he even knows this) is that one of SK's friends has his friend's phone number. And let's face it: Not every spring break rendezvous results in a desire to keep in touch once everyone is back to their regular home life.
Also, has anyone figured out how SK, who is 20, was able to check into a 21-and-over resort? Do they just check to make sure at least one member of the party is 21+?

https://www.vaxvacationaccess.com/globalassets/suppliers/ifj/documents/groups/riu_hotels_and_resorts_spring_break_policy.pdf?_t_ip=157.55.39.81#:~:text=All%20Student%2FSpring%20Breaker%20Group,request%20at%20its%20sole%20discretion.

 

[Chimera]

Search for US student in Dominican Republic intensifies

PUNTA CANA, Dominican Republic (AP) — The search for a U.S. college student who went missing in the Dominican Republic intensified on Monday, one day after a man questioned by authorities visited the beach where she was last seen and spoke with officials.

ca.news.yahoo.com

They stated they were looking also on land. There is a lot of thick jungle area around at least part of the resort. Maybe he has scratches on him or maybe they have his shirt and shoes like I wondered earlier. I believe they will get to the bottom of whatever happened, with there determination.

I read earlier today, the 4 other people who drowned in January were all found within 48 hours.

View attachment 571696

Good !
Should have already happened, yet .....
SAR/HRD dogs ?
Omo.

SK was wearing bracelets, an anklet, and a pair of earrings that contained metal. If her body were to have been concealed and she was still wearing those, I presume metal detection could help in locating her remains...?

That said, if those were removed, they would be no help. When JR returned to the hotel at 9:55 in the morning, his left hand is in the pocket of his shorts/swim trunks and it does appear (from shadows, folds in the fabric below the shadows indicating his fingers) that something might be in that pocket but it is hard to say. Could be pixilation of the surveillance photos.

View attachment 571699
Photo from this DM article.

Family of wrestling star last to see Sudiksha Konanki alive speak out

The family of 22-year-old Josh Riibe, questioned by police as he was the last person to see Sudiksha Konanki alive at a Punta Cana resort, insists it's not in his nature to harm anyone.

www.dailymail.co.uk

IF Sudiksha was concealed, it was mentioned that security cameras would have shown that; but if the power was out, then cameras would've been useless ?
Imo.

 

[Wsimm]

My feeling is, Josh was probably in phase 2 of alcoholism. Definitely not phase 1, experimenting.

Four Stages of Alcoholism and Early Detection | SUN Behavioral Houston

Knowing the 4 Stages of Alcoholism Can Press the Reset Button With Alcohol Use Disorder

sunhouston.com

Phase 2 happens when liver enzymes degrading alcohol get “trained”. People are not dependent yet, they can totally stop it for long time without experiencing any side effects, but…I once watched a group of several people in stage 2 drinking. Interesting experience. In the moment between Metaxa+local 60-proof beverage and running to the next store for the beer, one of women got tipsy. She got under a cold shower, explaining to me that “she didn’t like it when alcohol gets to her head.” That totally sobered her up and she continued.

What I didn’t do was returning back to that house in the morning to check what they remembered of the conversation (there were two nondrinkers there, the husband of one woman and myself, so we spoke and they provided a lot of information).

This is stage 2. They totally stop drinking when there is yard work period, or such. They don’t struggle from it. No dependency.

My opinion: it is stage 2 in Josh R, and while he doesn’t struggle from it (goes to school, makes the decisions), the amount gets to his brain and causes confabulations. His stories probably don’t match, but it is not intentional. It is the function of his brain. Someone has to get a good history of his alcohol use, and he has to be honest. Also, what was the pattern of alcohol consumption in his family.

We are assuming that we are dealing with a good witness whose stories don’t match, but I am beginning to think that he is a poor witness and it is his brain that restores the events poorly.

JMO. Wishing Sudiksha’s parents to get the answers about their daughter. Such a sad story.

Doing yard work without enjoying a cold beer would be no fun. They both over indulged. I’m curious if the reported power outage added to them consuming more than they normally would have. No power means no AC. I can imagine the humidity is high this time of year? No lights, no TV, possibly no Wi-Fi had them staying out of their rooms much later than planned. I especially feel the girls might’ve been a little freaked out being in their rooms in the dark. Hot conditions, sunburns, dehydration, boredom and simply the communal curiosity on the outage itself led them all to consume way more than intended.