FBI Joins Search for College Student Who Went Missing on Spring Break Trip in the Dominican Republic

Mar. 15, 2025

The FBI has joined the search for a 20-year-old college student who went missing in the Dominican Republic on a spring break trip with friends.

Sudiksha Konanki, a junior at the University of Pittsburgh, was last seen early on Thursday, March 6, walking on a beach at Riu Republica Resort in Punta Cana, according to theDominican Republic National Police.

Konanki — a resident of Virginia’s Loudoun County and citizen of India — was staying at the resort hotel with five friends who arrived in the country on March 3, officials said.

Both U.S. and local law enforcement have been investigating what happened to her, including seeking to corroborate the account of a person who was with her on the beach, according to police. No charges have been filed.

The FBI and U.S. Embassy International Liaison have joined in the investigation, Dominican authorities said in a press release. The Embassy of India in the Dominican Republic is also involved.

Sudiksha Konanki.Handout

Handout

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Konanki’s father has asked authorities to widen the investigation to include the possibility that his daughter has been a victim of kidnapping or human trafficking.

“We don’t think she would be able to survive for more than three days in the water and I think something else might’ve happened to her,” Subbarayudu Konanki recentlytold CNN.

Konanki’s body has yet to be recovered amid a “sea, air and land” search “in the entire periphery and surrounding areas, through the use of drones, helicopters, divers, boats, canine units and human personnel, among other technologies,” police said.

A missing persons poster described Sudiksha as 5 feet 3 inches tall with black hair and brown eyes. She was last seen wearing a brown bikini, round earrings, an anklet and several bracelets.

source: people.com