A Minnesota student may have information connected to the disappearance of an American woman in the Dominican Republic.
Sudiksha Konanki, a 20-year-old University of Pittsburgh student, was reported missing while vacationing with five friends and staying at a Riu República Hotel in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, according to the Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office.
Police say Konanki is a resident of Loudoun County, Virginia, a citizen of India and a permanent resident of the United States. She was last seen on the beach in the early morning of March 6, with the hotel stating her disappearance coincided with a power outage that resulted in many of its guest heading to the beach.
CNN reports on Thursday that new video has surfaced that shows multiple people being on the beach as authorities continue to work to identify them.
Sudiksha Konanki.
A 22-year-old Iowa man, who is a student at St. Cloud State University, has been identified by the sheriff’s office as someone who may have information regarding Konanki’s whereabouts, as he had been with her on the beach on the night she was last seen.
A spokesperson with the sheriff’s office tells Bring Me The News the man “is not a suspect” and as of Thursday afternoon the investigation isn’t considered to be criminal.
A St. Cloud State spokesperson confirms the man is a student at the university and has been since 2023. The senior majors in land surveying and mapping sciences.
The man wasn’t originally with the group that Konanki traveled with, authorities said.
Bring Me The News isn’t naming the man as he hasn’t been charged or suspected of any crime.
The sheriff’s office is working with the Dominican National Police, the FBI and the U.S. Department of State as the investigation remains ongoing.
Authorities are conducting a search by land, air and water, using multiple methods in the form of helicopters, drones, divers, boats, and canines, among other methods.
