Pittsburg, PA
Missing Pitt student Sudiksha Konanki’s hometown sheriff names person of interest five days into search
Authorities in Virginia have identified a 24-year-old man as a person of interest in connection to University of Pittsburgh student Sudiksha Konanki’s mysterious disappearance last week in the Dominican Republic, according to a report.
The sheriff’s office in Loudoun County, where the missing college student is from, told Fox News Digital that Iowa resident Joshua Ribe “has been interviewed at length” but has not been accused of foul play in what remains a missing person’s case.
“Sheriff [Michael] Chapman wants to make sure the investigation is comprehensive and includes all possible assets and techniques,” a spokesperson for the sheriff, Thomas Julia, told Fox News Digital.
“We are working closely with the FBI on all of this, and they are working with the Dominican National Police.”
The 20-year-old pre-med student was on spring break with five friends at the Riu Republic Resort in Punta Cana on March 6 when she vanished. She was last seen on the beach and Ribe is believed to be the last person to see her alive.
The pair was last captured on surveillance footage walking with a group of friends toward the beach area around 4:15 a.m. Thursday, according to the Dominican Republic National Police.
Footage obtained by Noticias SIN showed Konanki seemingly clinging to Ribe, a fellow guest at the Caribbean resort, as the group walked onto the beach.
Konanki and several friends were on the beach before most of the group called it a night and headed back to their hotel, leaving the young woman on the sand along with her male companion, according to Dominican media.
Ribe, who traveled to the Dominican Republic from Iowa, gave authorities three different accounts of what happened after the two were alone on the beach, first telling cops he threw up from the rough surf and went back to shore – but asked Konanki if she was OK, according to local reports.
In the second version, he allegedly said he felt sick to his stomach and left the water, at which point he last saw the missing woman in knee-deep surf before he passed out.
He then told authorities he saw the Indian citizen and permanent US resident walking along the shore before he passed out in the sand.
Dominican police have not said if they suspect foul play, but said Ribe is cooperating with their investigation.
Local authorities have speculated that the spring breaker from Chantilly, Virginia, likely drowned after jumping into the ocean.
Her father, Subbarayudu Konanki, called on authorities Monday to expand search efforts over his “growing suspicion” she was kidnapped since her body never washed ashore.
Police in Punta Cana said on Tuesday they are re-interviewing Konaki’s five travel companions, hotel employees and others who were with her in the early morning hours at the ritzy resort.
The investigation is now being led by a “high-level commission” of local and US agencies, including the FBI, officials said.
The search entered its fifth day Tuesday, with missing person posters describing the young woman as 5 foot 3 with black hair and brown eyes.
Pittsburg, PA
Steelers Open Return Window for Cory Trice
With the Pittsburgh Steelers’ defense in a slump, one of their young cornerbacks who is currently on the reserve/injured list could soon be activated and potentially help the team upon his return.
Ahead of their Week 9 game against the Indianapolis Colts, the Steelers have announced that they’ve opened Cory Trice Jr.’s 21-day practice window while he remains on IR.
Should he not be added to the 53-man roster before that window closes, Trice Jr. will be forced to miss the rest of the season.
Last week, head coach Mike Tomlin responded with a simple, “He is,” when asked if the third-year corner was nearing a return to the practice field.
Trice has dealt with a littany of injuries going all the way back to his days in college at Purdue. He suffered a season-ending ACL injury with the Boilermakers in 2021, and he then slid in the 2023 NFL Draft as a result.
Pittsburgh landed him in the seventh round that year with the No. 241 overall pick, but his rookie campaign was wiped out before it could even truly begin after he tore his ACL during training camp.
Trice Jr. recovered in time to participate in both OTAs and training camp last summer while also appearing in all three preseason contests, earning a 53-man roster spot in the process.
He suited up in each of the Steelers’ first three games of the 2024 season, but he suffered a hamstring injury that kept him on IR until Week 17.
Pittsburgh added a slew of cornerbacks this past offseason, including Jalen Ramsey, Darius Slay Jr., Brandin Echols and Donte Kent, but Trice was still in position to earn a roster spot heading into training camp.
His hamstring affliction, which he suffered on August 1, kept him sidelined during the entire preseason before he was placed on IR at final roster cuts.
The Steelers’ secondary has struggled for essentially the entire season up to this point, but they’ve begun switching things up. They first benched Slay in favor of Echols during their Week 8 matchup with the Green Bay Packers before acquiring Kyle Dugger in a trade from the New England Patriots after DeShon Elliott suffered a knee injury that resulted in him being placed on IR.
Ramsey, Slay, Echols and Joey Porter Jr. are still entrenched as Pittsburgh’s quartet at the cornerback position at the moment, but Trice Jr. has the potential to develop into a useful player for Pittsburgh.
It remains to be seen if he’ll see the field much on defense when, and if, he returns, but he’d be a nice depth piece to have down the stretch.
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Pittsburg, PA
Pittsburgh-area native riding out Hurricane Melissa in Jamaica says it’s “the scariest thing”
As Hurricane Melissa rips through Jamaica, thousands of locals and visitors are riding it out, including a woman from southwestern Pennsylvania.
As the winds blew and the rain came pouring down in Montego Bay, Antoinette Margita hunkered down in her hotel, filled with anxiety.
“I just don’t know what to expect. I’ve never been through anything like this,” Margita said. “It’s probably the scariest thing.”
From Duquesne, she flew out of Pittsburgh and got to Jamaica on Friday for what was supposed to be a trip celebrating her friend’s birthday. But when there were early signs of a potential storm, her friend decided to stay back.
“I should have listened to her,” Margita said.
She could not get an early flight out, so she enjoyed the sunshine until Monday night, when the front started to come in and pick up Tuesday morning.
“I kind of feel like I’m in a movie. It’s not real, but it is real,” Margita said. “You can hear like the wind. It’s like whistling. The door sounds like the door is going to come open.”
The hotel gave the guests care packages with lots of water, along with notes on how to ride out the hurricane, instructing them to put a mattress against the window.
So far, so good, as her hotel is running on a generator, but shortly after Melissa made landfall nearly 40 miles away, a little water started flooding under her door.
“Just thinking positive and just trying to talk to my friends on the phone to get me through it,” Margita said.
As the hours go on, Margita hopes things don’t get worse, waiting for the moment she can fly back to Pittsburgh.
“I just want to come home, honestly, that’s what I want,” Margita said.
Margita was originally supposed to fly out on Tuesday. The flight was, of course, cancelled, as was her new flight for Wednesday. It’s unclear when the airport will reopen.
Pittsburg, PA
Fan suffers ‘life-threatening’ injuries in fall at Pittsburgh Penguins game, officials say
The Pittsburgh Penguins and the Pittsburgh Public Safety Department confirmed that a fan fell from the upper bowl of PPG Paints Arena during the game between the Penguins and the St. Louis Blues on Oct. 27.
The Department said in a statement posted to Facebook that an adult male fell from the 200 level of the arena at around 7:15 local time, striking a individual located in the suite level below before continuing to fall to the 100 level.
Pittsburgh EMS paramedics transported the individual to an area hospital with life-threatening injuries, according to the statement. The person struck on the suite level was evaluated by paramedics on scene and declined transport to the hospital, officials said.
The Penguins said in a statement posted to X that the team and OVG Management Group, which operates the arena, are monitoring the situation and “our concerns remain with the individual and his family at this time.”
USA TODAY has reached out to OVG Management Group for further comment.
After the game, the Penguins’ Sidney Crosby — who became the ninth player in NHL history to surpass 1,700 career points — seemed more focused on the well-being of the fan who fell than his own personal milestone.
“We just heard someone fell tonight,” Crosby said. “Doesn’t feel right to be talking about points. My thoughts and prayers to that person.”
This is a developing story
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