Before the US college students in the Dominican Republic disappeared, she and the last people she saw on March 6 were drinking before deciding to swim in rough surfing, prompting questions about the responsibility that the resort they are staying in could potentially face.
In the early hours of March 6th, Suddiksha Konanki and her friends walked from the hotel bar to the beach outside Ryurepublika in Punta Cana, staying with five female friends from the University of Pittsburgh.
The 20-year-old appears to have swam with a 22-year-old man named Joshua Libe of Iowa. The Libe clearly told Dominican Republic authorities that they were swimming and were hit by the huge waves.
“I've become the Natalee Holloway Investigation Way Acked Acked. There are some similarities here, but there are some differences,” Chris Swecker, former assistant director of the FBI Criminal Investigation, told Fox News Digital. “But in this case, I think it's plausible that it's own death based on everything I've read… I don't think it's a strange assumption here, based on the fact that they're pretty intoxicated.”
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Suddiksha Conanki, 20, has been missing from Punta Cana, the Dominican Republic since March 6th. (Fox News Digital handouts/Santiago Baez)
Riibe told police he was drinking vodka with a shot of 7UP and Tequila, adding that the group of women he was with had bought a “pink tequila shot” they drank as a group.
On the beach, he and Conanki went underwater, with two of her female friends on land. Libe and Conanki were talking when “big waves” hit them, Libe said. At the time, there was a warning of a red flag on the beach, warning people not to go swimming in the rough waves.
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Four tourists were drowned near Punta Cana in January, according to the Associated Press.
Local authorities are looking for US student Sudiksha Konanki in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, on Tuesday, March 11, 2025. (Santiago Baez from Fox News Digital)
“When it comes to the ocean… if you don't recover quite quickly, the sea creatures will take care of it,” Swecker said. “And we haven't seen our bodies wash away before.”
Swecker, who is also a lawyer, added that “we can definitely see the issue of the resort's liability” in connection with Conanki's loss of failure.
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“Depending on the industry standards of such a resort, people were outside the hotel due to power outages, regardless of whether they had enough cameras or not. Should there be security on the beach?” he asked.
Sudiksha Konanki on Facebook selfie. The 20-year-old junior from the University of Pittsburgh has been missing since March 6th. (Sudiksha konanki/facebook)
Two hours ago, Riu Republica resolved a nearly 25-hour power outage that affected about 30% of the resort, with some people charging their phones and other electronic devices selling light, water, Wi-Fi or electricity in their rooms.
“In response to a publication that links the electrical disturbances experienced at the RIU Republica Hotel to the tragic disappearance of guest Sudiksha Chowdary Konanki, Riu Hotels & Resorts wants to make it clear that both events are completely irrelevant.”
The hotel's parent company added that the efforts of RIU Republica staff are “experimental in terms of dedication, commitment and professionalism in solving serious technical obstacles within hours and mitigate the impact it has on services in the meantime.”
Investigators expanded the search area as American college student Sudiksha Conanki is missing. (Fox News Graphics)
Dominican Republic lawyer Louis Birches does not believe that the resort will be held liable unless the guest proves that “the hotel or its employees acted recklessly.”
“The hotel, as a general rule, will not be held liable if a guest acts recklessly.”
“Similarly, regarding beach swimming situations, we need to demonstrate that the hotel was unable to provide the right sign to inform guests about proper use of the beach,” Virches told Fox News Digital.
“In principle, hotels will not be held responsible if a guest acts recklessly. For example, if the guest is not at work and the guest has swam for a designated time despite visible danger signs such as dangerous signs of bad weather.”
Search for Sudiksha Konanki in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic on March 10th. (AP/FrancescoSpotorno)
He continued: “In this particular case, when two adults fail to comply with the safety measures established by the hotel to prevent an accident, I see no basis for a claim against the resort. That is, it is necessary to prove that the hotel is negligent in showing, communicating and enforcing safety measures.”
Swecker said it is possible for Conanki's family to sue the resort for negligence if “security is inadequate”, “bathroom lacks lighting” or if the beach is not closed or protected during the red flag warning.
Fox News Digital reached out to Riu Republica for comment.
A hotel horror story appears after an American college student goes missing as the resort claims connection
Conanki was last seen in surveillance footage at about 4:15am on March 6th, with seven other seven women, including five women and two men, and seven other women. She was last seen on the beach around 4:50am.
Local governments took part in the search for missing student Sudiksha Konanki on March 11, 2025. (Santiago Baez from Fox News Digital)
Surveillance footage from the hotel shows a group of six, including five women and one man, returning from the beach from the beach around 5:55am.
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The young man seen in Conanki earlier can be seen in surveillance footage entering the hotel around 9am on March 6th.
Officials are asking anyone with information to contact the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office at 703-777-1021. To stay anonymous, call Loudoun Crime Solvers at 703-777-1919.
Michael Ruiz and Ashley Papa of Fox News contributed to this report.
