The parents of the Minnesota college student identified as a person of interest in the disappearance of University of Pittsburgh student Sudiksha Konanki said their son has been detained “under irregular conditions” – as sources said authorities in the Dominican Republic pledged to intensify interrogations.

The “person of interest” in the disappearance of missing Pitt student Sudiksha Konanki claims he saved them both from drowning before she vanished.

The parents of Joshua Riibe, the person of interest in the disappearance of University of Pittsburgh student Sudiksha Konanki, said their son has been 'detained under irregular conditions and subjected to extensive questioning' by police after the woman disappeared in the Dominican Republic earlier this month.

Joshua Steven Riibe, 24, has been identified as the man seen hugging and walking hand-in-hand with the 20-year-old student just hours before she vanished in the Dominican Republic.

The person of interest in the disappearance of University of Pittsburgh student Sudiksha Konanki claims he saved her from drowning, as police continue to search for clues a week after she vanished during her spring break trip to the Dominican Republic.

Joshua Riibe, the person of interest in Sudiksha Konanki's March 6 disappearance in the Dominican Republic, has spoken out for the first time, stating that he is 'just trying to help.'