Classes realized in Natalee Holloway disappearance apply to Sudiksha Konanki case: retired FBI agent

Because the seek for a lacking American school pupil who vanished off a seashore within the Dominican Republic continues, a retired FBI particular agent says investigators can study classes from previous instances like Natalee Holloway.

“One mistake international authorities usually make is relying an excessive amount of on voluntary cooperation from individuals of curiosity,” Jason Pack, a retired FBI supervisory particular agent, advised Fox Information Digital.

“The FBI must be urging Dominican officers to instantly seize digital units, study journey historical past, and conduct forensic evaluation on areas the place she was final seen,” Pack continued.

Pack, who can also be a former chief of the FBI’s Youngster Abduction Speedy Deployment Group and an performing authorized attaché, mentioned the FBI can’t take over the investigation however will use diplomatic channels to push Dominican authorities to prioritize key investigative steps, present forensic help, and coordinate intelligence-sharing that might uncover new leads.

MISSING AMERICAN IN DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: UNPREDICTABLE OCEAN CURRENTS, BEACHFRONT POSE MAJOR SEARCH CHALLENGE

The disappearance of American school pupil Sudiksha Konanki, left, has been linked to the disappearance of Natalee Holloway as a result of instances’ similarities.

The disappearance of Sudiksha Konanki, a pre-med pupil on the College of Pittsburgh, has been in comparison with Holloway’s disappearance in 2005.

Natalee’s mom, Beth Holloway, mentioned there’s one key distinction between the seek for her daughter 20 years in the past in Aruba and the seek for Konanki, the 20-year-old who vanished in the Dominican Republic final week: a U.S. embassy.

BETH HOLLOWAY IDENTIFIES KEY DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SUDIKSHA KONANKI CASE AND HER DAUGHTER’S

Beth Holloway (Mark Wilson/Getty Photos)

“The household is so lucky to have an American embassy there to work with,” Beth Holloway, who has been an outspoken advocate for pupil security since her daughter’s dying, advised Fox Information Digital in a earlier assertion. “I didn’t have that in Aruba.”

Each the younger ladies vanished in Caribbean nations whereas on trip. 

Natalee Holloway disappeared throughout a highschool commencement celebration at a lodge in Aruba, whereas Konanki disappeared whereas on a spring break journey together with her College of Pittsburgh associates at an all-inclusive resort in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic.

Natalee Holloway was final seen alive on Might 30, 2005, leaving a bar with Joran van der Sloot. He was the prime suspect in her disappearance for the next 18 years and eventually admitted to killing her in an Oct. 3, 2023, confession made public after he pleaded responsible to the extortion case.

AMERICAN COLLEGE STUDENT SUDIKSHA KONANKI’S DISAPPEARANCE IN DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: TIMELINE

Native authorities seek for lacking pupil Sudiksha Konanki in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, on March 11, 2025. (Santiago Baez for Fox Information Digital)

Konanki was final seen on surveillance digicam with 5 different folks coming into the seashore on the Riu República Resort in Punta Cana after 4:15 a.m. Thursday, the Dominican Nationwide Police mentioned in a press release.

Surveillance video, obtained by Noticias SIN, captured the group striding in direction of the seashore at the five-star resort. The footage is the final time authorities tracked Konanki earlier than the Virginia resident disappeared.

Konanki’s disappearance has sparked widespread hypothesis concerning the occasions main as much as it, prompting regulation enforcement in each the Dominican Republic and the U.S. to research.

Since her daughter’s homicide, Beth Holloway has been advocating on her behalf and mentioned that the disappearance of Konanki, 20, must be a warning for vacationers.

“I’ve created the full-circle security plan for vacationers and residents of all ages to remind them to spend as a lot time planning the tip of their outing as they do planning the place to go, what to put on and who they’re going with,” Holloway mentioned.

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Whereas early reviews instructed Konanki might have drowned, specialists say they imagine she would have washed ashore or been discovered by now if that have been the case. Authorities are formally urging the general public to not leap to conclusions because the investigation unfolds.

Police have spent days looking out the shoreline with boats, dive groups and helicopters. The FBI is concerned, and the sheriff from her Virginia hometown mentioned he could be sending two detectives to help within the investigation.

Fox Information Digital’s Sarah Rumpf-Whitten, Michael Ruiz and Ashley Papa contributed to this report.