An American college student detained in the Dominican Republic following the disappearance of fellow American student Sudiksha Konanki is no longer under police surveillance but is not free to return to the U.S., a judge ruled Tuesday.
Joshua Riibe, who is believed to have been the last person to see Konanki, 20, on the morning of March 6, is allowed to move freely about the country following the habeas corpus hearing but his passport has not been returned to him, according to NBC and ABC News.
Appearing before a judge, Riibe, 22, who has not been charged with a crime or declared a suspect in Konanki’s disappearance, said he has helped local law enforcement with their investigation, has received support from Konanki’s family and that he’s “ready to go home and go back to my life,” according to ABC News, which reported that a follow-up hearing has been scheduled for March 28.
Sudiksha Konanki/Facebook
“Her mother gave me a hug and said, ‘Thank you for saving my daughter the first time,’” Riibe reportedly told the court.
Riibe had claimed that he last saw Konanki walking in knee-deep water after pulling her out of rough water during an early morning swim in Punta Cana. Reports have suggested that the pair may have been drinking heavily before going to the beach together.
Riibe said he passed out on a beach chair and doesn’t know what happened to her after, according to transcripts of an interview he gave with local investigators.
“I understand I’m here to help, but it’s been 10 days and I can’t leave,” he told the court. “I’m just doing what I can, and at this point, there’s nothing more I can do.”
His attorneys, who did not immediately respond to HuffPost’s request for comment, argued that he was being detained illegally.
In a statement after the hearing, they thanked the court “for recognizing the rule of law and ensuring respect for his fundamental rights as a foreign citizen in the Dominican Republic.”
Konanki’s parents, reading a statement on camera this week, said that they’ve been told that the water was extremely rough at the time of her disappearance and that they have accepted that their daughter likely drowned.
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“We kindly ask that you keep our daughter in your prayers,” her father said, as his wife sobbed beside him.
The sheriff’s office in Loudoun County, Virginia, where Konanki’s family lives, said it is supporting the Konanki family “in every way possible” and that it is leaving the final declaration of Konanki’s death with authorities in the Dominican Republic.
“The disappearance of Sudiksha Konanki is tragic, and we cannot imagine the grief her family has been feeling,” Sheriff Michael Chapman said in a statement Tuesday.
