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University of Missouri student Riley Strain has been missing since 8 March.
The 22-year-old was partying with his fraternity brothers in Nashville when he was kicked out of a bar and became seperated from his friends.
After a fruitless search, the friends reported Mr Strain missing, kicking off a now week-long search for the college student.
Police have found no evidence of foul play in Mr Strain’s disappearance. Ground and air search efforts are ongoing. A police helicopter searched the immediate area around downtown Nashville, including a river bank where Mr Strain allegedly wandered near. Investigators using boats on the Cumberland River have found no trace of Mr Strain.
Mr Riley’s parents have joined his friends and police in Nashville to search for the young man.
“This is definitely the worst nightmare,” Mr Strain’s stepfather, Chris Whiteild, told News 2. “Riley talks to us, whether it’s me or to his mom. He talks to his mom three or four times a day. For him to go this long without talking is not normal by any means.”
A timeline of Riley Strain’s last known whereabouts
8 March: Mr Strain, a native of Springfield, Missouri, and his friends are in Nashville and visit 32BRIDGE, a bar owned by country music star Luke Bryan. Sometime between 9.30pm and 9.50pm, Mr Strain is escorted from the bar. His stepfather, Chris Whiteid, alleges that Mr Strain was overserved.
After Mr Strain left the bar, he spoke with his friends on the phone and told them he would meet them at the Tempo Hotel, where the group was staying. However, security footage from 9.45pm shows him walking in the opposite direction of the hotel. In the footage, he appears to be stumbling and holding his head.
Between 10 and 10.30pm, Mr Strain’s phone pings near Public Square Park, which is located near the Cumberland River, according to FOX17. This is the last signal sent from his phone.
9 March: Mr Strain’s friends learn he did not make it back to the hotel, and begin searching for him. At 1.46am, they report Mr Strain missing.
10 March – 11 March: Police search for Mr Strain. Officers told local news outlets that they started by checking local hospitals and jails to see if Mr Strain was picked up by police or had been injured and transported for medical treatment.
Their searches fail to turn up any information on Mr Strain’s whereabouts.
Here is the full timeline…
ICYMI: What happened to Riley Strain?
A Missouri university student has vanished after being kicked out of a bar in Tennessee, while on a trip with his fraternity.
Riley Strain, 22, was last seen on Friday night as he left Luke’s 32 Bridge Food + Drink in Nashville’s Broadway area.
Now a despearte search is underway.
The college senior’s stepfather said in an interview on Monday that the days since Riley’s disappearance had been “pure hell”.
Read the full story…
What do the search efforts look like?
The Metropolitan Nashville Police Department says its officers have been out looking for Riley.
A MNPD helicopter searched the downtown area on Monday, “including the riverbank”, while detectives also searched on the ground.
Mizzou student Riley Strain, 22, was last seen on Friday 8 March 2024 in Nashville, TN
When Riley disappeared, his friends said they spent hours looking for him, while his mother and stepfather have also joined the search in recent days.
On Wednesday night, boats searched the Cumberland River for Strain as detectives shifted their focus to reviewing security video. Riley’s phone was last tracked near Public Square Park along the Cumberland River.
“The sad part of this situation is every day we get new leads and go down different avenues,” Mr Dingman told WSMV4.
“We’re going to get there, but it also opens up more doors on what could’ve possibly happened.”
Riley’s parents have also come to Nashville to assist with search efforts.
“This is definitely the worst nightmare,” Strain’s stepfather, Chris Whiteild, told News 2. “Riley talks to us, whether it’s me or to his mom. He talks to his mom three or four times a day. For him to go this long without talking is not normal by any means.”
Nashville Police say no signs of foul play
Police in Nashville say there are currently “no signs of foul play” amid the ongoing search for missing student Riley Strain.
On Thursday an urban search and rescue team continued to search along the brush line of the bank of the Cumberland River, checked storm drains and looked in dilapidated buildings.
However at a police conference later that afternoon – almost one week after the sophomore from the University of Missouri went missing – police said there was still no sign of the 22-year-old.
Metro Nashville Police Sergeant Bob Neilsen told reporters: “In a missing person’s case, people go missing for various reasons. Some are voluntary, some are not. Some could be due to a medical incident.
“Right now, we have no idea what happened with this gentleman. We don’t believe there was any crime involved, however. All of our resources right now are dedicated to locating him.”
Read the full story…
Homeless residents in Nashville report seeing Riley Strain
Missing student Riley Strain was reportedly seen wandering in downtown Nashville by two separate groups of homeless people on the night that he disappeared.
Mr Strain, who attends the University of Missouri, has been missing since 8 March after he was kicked out of 32BRIDGE bar, an establishment owned by country singer Luke Bryan, at 9.30pm.
The 22-year-old had allegedly been overserved alcohol, according to his stepfather, Chris Whiteid. The Tennessee Alcoholic Beverage Commission is investigating those claims.
After being kicked out, the student then wandered the streets, according to surveillance footage in the area.
On Wednesday, friend Chris Dingman said he had learned from Mr Strain’s relatives that the missing student was seen by two groups of homeless people on the night he vanished.
Read the full story…
Missing student Riley Strain was only served one drink before being kicked out of Nashville bar
Riley Strain, a University of Missouri who went missing after reportedly getting kicked out of a Nashville bar, was just served one drink before being escorted out, the bar owners say.
The 22-year-old student was partying with friends at Luke Bryan’s 32 Bridge Food + Drink bar just before 10pm on 8 March. The bar’s owner, TC Restaurant Group, told KOLR 10 Mr Strain was served one alcoholic drink and two waters before he was asked to leave.
“No members of Riley’s party were required to stay inside the venue to close any open tabs, and no one from Luke’s 32 Bridge team prevented anyone from Riley’s party from leaving the venue with him,” the owners added.
Mr Strain and his fraternity brothers were reportedly on a trip to Nashville for a spring formal.
The news comes days after the Tennessee Alcoholic Beverage Commission announced on 13 March that it was looking into whether or not Mr Strain had been served alcohol while visibly intoxicated at the bar.
Read the full story…
‘Pure hell’ since the college senior’s disappearance, stepfather says
The college senior’s stepfather said in an interview on Monday that the days since Riley’s disappearance had been “pure hell”.
His family has travelled to the city and been walking the streets looking for the young man who called his frat brothers after leaving the bar, saying he was going back to their hotel.
Riley’s friends tried to call him repeatedly after that on Friday night and on Saturday morning, but the calls kept going to voicemail.
Metropolitan Nashville Police Department released video footage on Tuesday, showing Riley wearing a two-tone shirt, crossing 1st Avenue North to Gay Street at around 9.45pm on Friday. That spot is just over half a mile from the bar.
Investigators are asking anyone who could help locate the 6’5” tall man with a thin build, blue eyes and light brown hair to come forward.
Dan Gooding has the full story…
WATCH: CCTV released by police shows 22-year-old missing student Riley Strain crossing road
Missouri student Riley Strain’s disappearance: A timeline
His friends attempted to find him after he left the bar, but by 1.40am, found no trace of him. They then called the police to report him missing.
The following is a timeline of the disappearance of Riley Strain.
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Source: independent.co.uk
