U.S. student Sudiksha Konanki missing in Dominican Republic: Search underway
Sudiksha Konanki was last seen in the early hours of March 6 on a beach near the hotel where she was staying with several friends, according to Civil Defense officials, who reported that the search continued on Sunday.
The National Police of the Dominican Republic reported that, in coordination with the Public Ministry, it has deployed extensive search and investigative actions for Sudiksha Konanki Chodary. This was following the report of the disappearance of the 20-year-old girl, originally from India and residing in the United States.
The authorities also reported that the student was last seen on surveillance camera in the early hours of March 6, when she entered the beach of the Riu hotel, Punta Cana, with a friend who is under investigation. The young woman was staying at the hotel, along with five friends, who arrived in the country on March 3.
Missing U.S. student in Punta Cana
Sudiksha, a student at the University of Pittsburgh and resident of Ashburn, Virginia, was in the Dominican Republic enjoying her spring break before starting her pre-med studies. Konanki's father, Subbarayudu Konanki, stated that her daughter told her friends Wednesday that she was heading to a party at the resort. However, she did not go back.
“She went to the beach on March 6 early morning around 4 a.m. with friends and some other guys they met at the resort. After that, her friends came back after some time and my daughter did not come back, did not show up from the beach,” her father said. Her friends had reported her missing around 4 p.m. on Thursday local time, and its last sighting had been about 12 hours earlier, at 4 a.m., the Riu hotel chain stated.
The young woman is approximately 1.63 meters (5'4"), weighs 54 kg (120 pounds), has black hair and brown eyes. At the time of her disappearance, she was wearing a brown two-piece swimsuit, large hoop earrings, a bracelet on her right ankle, a yellow bracelet on her right hand, and a multicolored bracelet on her left hand.
Active search for Konanki, investigation continues
The Dominican police specified they were informed of the disappearance last Friday the 7th at 8:00 in the morning, via telephone by the U.S. Embassy in the country. After that, an exhaustive search has been initiated by sea, air and land, throughout the periphery and surrounding areas. Drones, helicopters, divers, boats, canine units and human personnel, among other technologies, are being used.
The authorities are considering the hypothesis that the young woman drowned, so they are maintaining an exhaustive search in the coastal area. The young man who entered the waters of the Punta Cana beach was interviewed by officials, for which authorities are expanding the investigation to corroborate the version that he offered preliminarily.
The University of Pittsburgh urged anyone with information to contact the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office. Furthermore, the U.S. State Department has issued a level two travel advisory for the Dominican Republic, warning U.S. citizens to use extra caution when visiting the country.