St. Cloud State student’s passport held amid questioning into missing woman in Punta Cana

Authorities have confiscated the passport of a student at St. Cloud State University — as part of their investigation into the disappearance of a woman who went missing in Punta Cana.

22-year-old Joshua Riibe is believed to be the last person to have seen University of Pittsburgh student Sudiksha Konanki before she went missing nearly 10 days ago.

Riibe has not been charged with a crime.

Officials say he has been extensively questioned and is still being interviewed.

On March 5, Konanki was part of a group that went to a nightclub and then for a walk on the beach, three Dominican officials involved in the investigation told ABC News. Most of the group went back to the hotel around 5:55 a.m. Riibe, a senior at St. Cloud State University — stayed with Konanki on the beach, and the two went for a swim, according to a Dominican Republic investigative police report.

Riibe, who met Konanki that night, confirmed he and the 20-year-old kissed after a night of drinking, he told a prosecutor Thursday, according to a transcript provided to ABC News from two Dominican Republic sources.

“A big wave came and hit us both, then the tide pulled us into the ocean,” he told the prosecutor. “When we surfaced, we tried to plead for help, but there was no one there.”

Riibe, a pool lifeguard, said he “held her under my arm and swam to get her out of the water.”

“I was trying to make sure that she could breathe the entire time — that prevented me from breathing the entire time, and I took in a lot of water,” he explained.

“When I finally touched the sand, I put her in front of me. Then she got up to go get her stuff since the ocean had moved us,” Riibe told the prosecutor. “She was not out of the water since it was up to her knee. She was walking at an angle in the water.”

“The last time I saw her, I asked her if she was OK. I didn’t hear her response because I began to vomit with all the water I had swallowed,” he said. “After vomiting, I looked around, and I didn’t see anyone. I thought she had taken her things and left.”

RELATED: Man who last saw missing Pittsburgh student Sudiksha Konanki thought she took ‘her things and left’

“After I saw her walking away, while she was walking in the water, I never saw her again,” he said.

Riibe said he passed out on a beach chair and woke up to the sun and mosquitoes on him. He was seen on surveillance footage returning to his room several hours later.

A statement from the chief prosecutor is expected tomorrow.

Riibe’s attorney has yet to respond to our requests for comment.