The body of University of Missouri student Riley Strain who went missing earlier this month after being thrown out from a Nashville bar during a trip with fraternity brothers has been found in a river, police said on Friday. His body was found in the Cumberland River near 61st Avenue North around 7:30 a.m. on Friday, WKRN reported.
Nashville police confirmed in a statement that the body recovered from the Cumberland River this morning was that of the missing 22-year-old. Authorities said no signs of foul play-related trauma were observed on Strain, who was last seen on March 8 after being kicked out from Luke's 32 Bridge Food + Drink.
Found at Last, but Dead
"The body of Riley Strain was recovered from the Cumberland River in West Nashville this morning, approximately 8 miles from downtown," the Metropolitan Nashville Police wrote on X.
Later, at a press conference on Friday morning, Chief John Drake told reporters: "This morning around 7:28 am we received a call from a worker. 'This morning around 7:28 am we received a call from a worker.
"As they were removing an object from the river, they noticed what appeared to be Riley Strain pop up.
"The medical examiners officer reviewed the body and confirmed that it is Riley Strain.
"The family have been contacted, there are no signs of foul play at this time according to the examination here at the riverbank.
"Mr Strain still had the shirt on that he was wearing, still had the watch. I want to say to the family my heart and prayers go out to you all for this very unfortunate and tragic incident."
The Delta Chi fraternity member was in Tennessee for their annual spring formal trip when he was thrown out of the bar shortly after 9:30 p.m. on March 8.
Strain had told his friends that he would meet them back at their hotel, but he was nowhere to be found when the group returned from their night out.
His friends tried to contact him but received no response. Concerned, they reported Strain as missing when they were unable to locate him through his Snapchat location.
Over the next couple of weeks, authorities pursued leads using phone pings and grainy surveillance footage, even discovering a bank card in his name on the riverbank earlier this week.
According to TC Restaurant Group, the operator and owner of Luke's 32 Bridge, the 6-foot-7 finance major purchased one alcoholic drink and two drinks of water during his visit to the establishment.
The bar said that security personnel decided to remove Strain from the premises based on their "conduct standards" after observing his behavior. He was escorted from the venue through the Broadway exit at the front of the building at 9:35 p.m.
"He was followed down the stairs with one member of his party. The individual with Riley did not exit and returned upstairs."
Disappearance Remains a Mystery
According to Nashville police, Strain was seemingly seen crossing Gay Street around 9:47 p.m. after departing from the bar. This location is approximately a 17-minute walk from Luke's 32 Bridge and in the opposite direction of the hotel.
He was later captured on the body camera of Nashville police officer Reginald Young as he walked down Gay Street, as reported by the department on X.
Young, who was in the vicinity investigating a reported vehicle burglary, briefly engaged with Strain, inquiring about his well-being, to which the Missouri senior responded, "Good."
Strain did not seem to be in any distress during their brief interaction.
According to a local homeless man, he saw a "very, very intoxicated" Strain nearly stumble over the edge of a trail into the Cumberland River.
Police reported seeing Strain one final time on Gay Street at 9:52 p.m., but noted that "No video has been discovered that shows Riley away from Gay St. after the 9:52 p.m. timeframe."
A girl with whom Strain had been romantically involved said that she texted him on the night of his disappearance "to see how he was doing" during the trip.
His Delta Chi fraternity brother, Chris Dingman, said that the girl received a strange "scripted text" from Strain, which said "Good lops."
Dingman said that the girl had difficulty understanding the meaning of the text and resorted to Googling its meaning. Strain's fraternity brother noted that the text underscored his friend's mental state that night.
