{"id":2414080,"date":"2025-03-20T15:27:58","date_gmt":"2025-03-20T19:27:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/missing-american-student-key-witness-wins-court-battle-now-cleared-to-leave\/"},"modified":"2025-03-20T15:27:58","modified_gmt":"2025-03-20T19:27:58","slug":"missing-american-student-key-witness-wins-court-battle-now-cleared-to-leave","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/missing-american-student-key-witness-wins-court-battle-now-cleared-to-leave\/","title":{"rendered":"Missing American Student: Key Witness Wins Court Battle, Now Cleared to Leave"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">24<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fmissing-american-student-key-witness-wins-court-battle-now-cleared-to-leave%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2414080&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (REP_0)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (REP_1)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>A judge in the Dominican Republic has allowed Joshua Riibe, the last person to see missing college student Sudiksha Konanki, to leave the country.<\/p>\n<p>Judge Edwin Delgado declared following a five-hour hearing Tuesday that &ldquo;Joshua Riibe is free to leave,&rdquo; according to a <a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2025\/03\/18\/us-news\/judge-rules-josh-riibe-is-free-to-leave-in-sudiksha-konanki-case\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">report<\/a> from the New York Post, which provided the <a href=\"https:\/\/ntelemicro.com\/libertad-y-regreso-de-pasaporte-para-joshua-riibe-implicado-en-desaparicion-sudiksha\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">translation<\/a> from Spanish-language news outlet Noticias Telemicro.<\/p>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/person-interest-last-spotted-missing-us-student-tells-authorities-saved-life\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">official<\/a> ordered the 22-year-old Iowa native to receive his passport.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I really want to be able to go home, talk to my family, give them hugs, tell them I miss them,&rdquo; Riibe told Delgado during the hearing.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I understand I&rsquo;m here to help, but it&rsquo;s been 10 days and I can&rsquo;t leave.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p> <script type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\tif ( getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"stnvideo\").remove() \t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\tdocument.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\", function() { \t\t\t\t\tfunction loadScript(src) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst script=document.createElement(\"script\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.src=src; \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.async=true; \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.body.appendChild(script); \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\tfunction findPreviousParagraph(selector, x) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst targetElement=document.querySelector(selector); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!targetElement) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Target element not found.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Get all <\/p>\n<p> elements in order as they appear in the document \t\t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphs=Array.from(document.querySelectorAll(\"p\"));  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the index of the last <\/p>\n<p> before the target element \t\t\t\t\t\tlet targetIndex=paragraphs.findIndex(p=> p.compareDocumentPosition(targetElement) & Node.DOCUMENT_POSITION_PRECEDING);  \t\t\t\t\t\tif (targetIndex===-1 || targetIndex <x) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Not enough paragraphs before the target element.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\treturn paragraphs[targetIndex - x]; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Set up IntersectionObserver \t\t\t\t\tfunction observeElement(element) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!element) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst observer=new IntersectionObserver( \t\t\t\t\t\t\t(entries)=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tentries.forEach(entry=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tif (entry.isIntersecting) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log(\"Paragraph is now visible:\", entry.target.textContent.trim()); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tloadScript(\"https:\/\/embed.sendtonews.com\/player3\/embedcode.js?fk=s28Az7AY\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.disconnect(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t}, \t\t\t\t\t\t\t{ threshold: 0.5 } \/\/ Adjust threshold as needed \t\t\t\t\t\t);  \t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.observe(element); \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the 1st paragraph before #stnvideo and observe it \t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphToObserve=findPreviousParagraph(\"#stnvideo\", 2); \t\t\t\t\tobserveElement(paragraphToObserve); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> <\/p>\n<p>Riibe said he was effectively imprisoned at the RUI Hotel and Resort, with his phone and passport confiscated and with police escorting him everywhere he went.<\/p>\n<p>He had not been charged with a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/25-year-old-missing-person-case-solved-nonverbal-man-brought-hospital\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">crime<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The parents of Konanki said they believe their daughter likely drowned off Punta Cana amid rough surf.<\/p>\n<p>They said they do not believe Riibe was involved in the demise of the 20-year-old.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">DR judge rules Josh Riibe is &lsquo;free to leave&rsquo; after being held in Sudiksha Konanki disappearance <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/HRimU9stlX\">https:\/\/t.co\/HRimU9stlX<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/ckOQ8JYMPE\">pic.twitter.com\/ckOQ8JYMPE<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; New York Post (@nypost) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/nypost\/status\/1902132836515401744?\">March 18, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><br \/> &ldquo;Both sides of the authorities have shown us how high the ocean waves were at the time of the incident, and both sides of the authorities have clarified the person of interest was not a suspect from the beginning,&rdquo; her father told the Post.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;It is with deep sadness and a heavy heart that we are coming to terms with the fact our daughter has drowned.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>A lawyer from Guzm&aacute;n Ariza, the firm that represented Riibe, issued a statement celebrating the decision, according to a <a href=\"https:\/\/abcnews.go.com\/International\/man-missing-pittsburgh-student-ready-home-back-life\/story?id=119905978\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">report<\/a> from ABC News.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Guzm&aacute;n Ariza expresses its deep gratitude to the Dominican judiciary and all institutions involved in the Joshua Steven Riibe case for recognizing and upholding the rule of law and ensuring respect for his fundamental rights as a foreign citizen in the Dominican Republic,&rdquo; the statement said.<\/p>\n<p>The disappearance of Konanki has garnered worldwide media attention.<\/p>\n<p>The University of Pittsburgh student, who is from Virginia, arrived in the Dominican Republic with friends on March 3 for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/nine-students-go-missing-parents-hopes-shattered-police-make-horrifying-discovery\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">spring break<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Security footage at a hotel bar showed her and Riibe together a few hours before her disappearance, with both of them possibly throwing up, according to the Post.<\/p>\n<p>Riibe and Konanki were shortly thereafter seen holding hands and taking a selfie together on a walk to the beach with the group.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">Joshua Riibe, the 22-year-old who was last with 20-year-old student Sudiksha Konanki the night she went missing, said in court that he&rsquo;s &ldquo;ready to go home and go back to my life.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Riibe, who is not charged with a crime, said Konanki&rsquo;s family hugged him and thanked him. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/HhitsnU3LL\">pic.twitter.com\/HhitsnU3LL<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; ABC News Live (@ABCNewsLive) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ABCNewsLive\/status\/1902113750510940229?\">March 18, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Riibe said the two met that night and went swimming, ultimately kissing in the ocean, according to ABC.<\/p>\n<p>They were then hit by a wave and dragged into the ocean, Riibe asserted.<\/p>\n<p>Lawyers for Riibe filed a writ of habeas corpus, demanding that he be released, since he has not been charged with any wrongdoing.<\/p>\n<p>Attorneys for the Dominican government, meanwhile, denied that he was being &ldquo;detained.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>They said he was merely a witness in the high-profile case and said he willingly turned over his passport.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey==typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts={ \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs=[ 'name', '', 'message' ]; 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( opts[inputs[i]]=document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"' + inputs[i] + '\"]' ).value ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .required-message' ).style.display='block'; \t\t\t\t\t\treturn; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction input[type=\"submit\"]' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).src=firefly_loading_gif_url; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='inline-block';  \t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( 'ma subbing' );  \t\t\t\t\tif( firefly_post_id ) opts['post_id']=firefly_post_id;  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Send the data using post with element id name and name2*\/ \t\t\t\t\tvar posting=jQuery.post( firefly_ajax_url, opts );  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Alerts the results *\/ \t\t\t\t\tposting.done( function( response ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif( response.success ) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( response.data ); \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-confirm' ).style.display='block';  \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdataLayer.push( { 'event': 'submit-correction' } ); \t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> \t     \t\t\t\t\t\t     \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><script>console.log(\"ad slot (BA1)\")<\/script> \t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A judge in the Dominican Republic has allowed Joshua Riibe, the last person to see missing college student Sudiksha Konanki, to leave the country. Judge Edwin Delgado declared following a five-hour hearing Tuesday that \u201cJoshua Riibe is free to leave,\u201d according to a report from the New York Post, which provided the translation from Spanish-language<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2414081,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Riib-vs-Konanki.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2414080","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Riib-vs-Konanki.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2414080","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2414080"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2414080\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2414081"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2414080"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2414080"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2414080"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}