The family of a missing University of Pittsburgh student has asked authorities in the Dominican Republic to declare her dead, police say. Sudiksha Konanki, 20, was last seen on March 6 after she went to a beach near her hotel with friends during a spring break trip. Her father, Subbarayudu Konanki, urged authorities to consider possibilities including kidnapping after an initial search failed to find her body, but the family now believes she drowned, USA Today reports.
- The sheriff of Loudoun County, Virginia, where the family lives, said in a statement that the family "has expressed their belief that she drowned," Sheriff Michael Chapman said, "While a final decision to make such a declaration rests with authorities in the Dominican Republic, we will support the Konanki family in every way possible as we continue to review the evidence and information made available to us in the course of this investigation."