The Iowa college student linked to the disappearance of spring breaker Sudiksha Konanki has broken his silence as new details about his background come to light. Joshua Riibe, 24, was the last known person to be 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.
Riibe has been at the center of the investigation after Konanki's disappearance. Authorities have confiscated his passport, requiring him to remain in the Dominican Republic under strict supervision. On Saturday he was questioned by two top law enforcement officials in the Dominican Republic hotel where he is staying.
Shocking Revelation
On Sunday morning, Riibe was seen alongside investigators, his attorney, and his father as he gestured toward the ocean while being questioned as a person of interest, NBC reported. "I'm just trying to help them out," Riibe told the outlet. "The ocean is a dangerous place."
Riibe has given police conflicting versions of what happened after he and Konanki were last seen walking toward the beach. However, in a recent interview with investigators, he shared more details.
According to a transcript of his conversation with police obtained by NBC, the former wrestler said that he and Konanki were "in waist-deep water, talking and kissing a little."
Meanwhile, his uncle Richard told the Daily Mail that Riibe has a girlfriend at St. Cloud State University in Minnesota, where he is also a student.
Riibe has continued to claim that a wave struck, pulling both of them into the ocean. "I kept trying to get her to breathe, but that didn't allow me to breathe all the time, and I swallowed a lot of water," he said, adding that he used to be a lifeguard.
Riibe, contradicting his earlier statements, claimed that he managed to get Konanki to safety before she ultimately disappeared.
"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 explained.
"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."
Mum Is the Word
Riibe declined to answer certain questions as officers pressed him on how they could verify the accuracy of his statements. He was also asked about what he had shared with a close friend regarding Konanki and his thoughts on her disappearance.
Investigators further inquired whether he knew if Konanki could swim, if she signaled or called for help in the water, whether he contacted authorities or informed the hotel, if he had spoken to friends about the incident, and how he felt about the entire 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.
Surveillance footage showed Riibe with Konanki and a group of her friends walking toward the beach in Punta Cana around 4 a.m. on March 6. Two hours later, her friends left to return to their room, leaving Riibe alone with the medical student on the beach.
In one version of events, Riibe said that he and Konanki entered the water and were carried away by a wave. He also claimed at one point that he felt unwell, left the water, and returned to his hotel room. In another account, he said he fell asleep on the beach.
Riibe allegedly provided yet another version, telling authorities he saw Konanki walking along the shore in knee-deep water toward the lounge chair where she had left her cover-up.
His family explained the inconsistencies in his statements was because of different translators being present during his three separate police interviews.
Security cameras later captured Riibe returning to his hotel room at 9:55 a.m., barefoot and shirtless. He told investigators he was shocked to find out that Konanki had disappeared.
The Loudon County Sheriff's Office in Virginia, Konanki's home state, has identified Riibe as a person of interest. However, there are currently no suspects in the case.
Although Riibe has been "confined to the hotel since the investigation began," his attorney told NBC that the U.S. is treating Konanki's disappearance as a missing persons case rather than a criminal matter.
Authorities in the Dominican Republic believe she drowned, and while they have questioned Riibe, they have not indicated that he is suspected of any wrongdoing.
