Riley Strain Found Dead - Who was 22-Year-old Missing Student?

A 22-year-old student of Mizzou – the University of Missouri known as Riley Strain who went missing and sparked a frantic search has been found dead.

Riley Strain went missing last Friday, March 8th, 2024 in downtown Nashville, Tennessee.

Strain was wearing brown square-toe boots, blue jeans and a black and white button-up shirt when he disappeared.

According to his close friends and family, it is quite unusual for him to go days without contacting anyone!

Riley Strain is 6’6” and weighs 165 lbs with blonde hair and blue eyes.

His disappearance sparked a massive search that has ended in disappointing fashion with news of Riley Strain being found dead.

UPDATE: Riley Strain found dead

Riley Strain’s body was found dead in a river in West Nashville the morning of Friday March 22.

Strain’s body was recovered from the Cumberland River in West Nashville, about eight miles from downtown.

“BREAKING: The body of Riley Strain was recovered from the Cumberland River in West Nashville this morning, approximately 8 miles from downtown. No foul play-related trauma was observed. An autopsy is pending,” Metro Nashville PD said in a statement on X (formerly Twitter).

BREAKING: The body of Riley Strain was recovered from the Cumberland River in West Nashville this morning, approximately 8 miles from downtown. No foul play-related trauma was observed. An autopsy is pending.
— Metro Nashville PD (@MNPDNashville) March 22, 2024

Metropolitan Nashville Police Department Chief John Drake said in a follow-up news conference that “there is no other evidence that suggests anything other than” Strain falling into the river, noting that he still had his clothes, watch and other identifying items on him.

Police added that no “foul play-related trauma was observed” and an autopsy is pending.

Strain’s family has been informed, Drake said.

Strain’s body was found by workers at a company on the river shortly after 7 a.m., CBS news reports.

“They removed something from the river and as they moved it they noticed Mr. Strain and called it in,” Drake said.

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Riley Strain footage

Riley Strain was last seen on Gay Street at 9:52 p.m. Friday March 8th after drinking downtown at a bar along Nashville’s popular Broadway strip.

Police released video footage showing Strain walking by himself along Gay Street around 9:50 p.m. and crossing 1st Avenue.

Strain stops and starts and appears a bit wobbly on his feet, the video shows.

He looks at other pedestrians and does a 360-degree turn before continuing to walk down the sidewalk.

Police said they searched the area, including the banks of the nearby Cumberland River, but found nothing.

Strain’s parents said he was asked to leave a bar Friday night, FOX 2 in St. Louis reported.

He told his friends he was going back to their hotel but never arrived.

“This is not like him at all,” Strain’s mother, Michelle Whiteid, told FOX 17 in Nashville, explaining her son usually calls and texts her throughout the day.

In a Facebook post, the Delta Chi Fraternity said Strain is a member of the group’s Missouri Chapter, and it urged the public to spread the word about Strain’s disappearance.

“The Delta Chi Fraternity is deeply concerned for the safety of #RileyStrain, a valued member of our Missouri Chapter,” the group posted Monday.

Sadly, Riley Strain was found dead Friday, March 22nd with his body dragged out of the Cumberland River.

Riley Strain Missing

A frantic search commenced on Facebook, on X (formerly Twitter) and on Reddit, after 22-year-old Mizzou student Riley Strain went missing in early March.

A post on Facebook by the page Nashville visitors read: “We have a Male College student that went missing from downtown Nashville Friday night around 10 pm.

“I have reached out to several local t.v. stations to help look, but with no luck so far. A police report has been made. Any help will be greatly appreciated.

“I have attached a picture and his last known location. His name is Riley Strain and he is 22 years old.

“He was visiting Nashville with fraternity brothers for the weekend and they were separated @ a local bar that evening and was never seen again.

“He is always in contact daily with family, so this is not like him to not stay in touch even when traveling. The second picture is the last place his phone pinged before being shut off. Thanks in advance,”

One Crissey Bolling McNeese wrote on Facebook, revealing they were at the venue where Strain reportedly went missing and infact their own son nearly went missing as well!

Sharing the post about the disappearance of Riley Strain, they wrote: “So sad we were down there Saturday night and it was so many people my anxiety was so high. 😞 Pray he is found.

“Crazy thing is my son was with us and his phone went dead and was separated from us for a little bit as well but luckily he ask to use someone’s phone called us and we ended up finding him. This is so so scary! I will not be going downtown again,”

Chelsea Strain, who identified herself as a cousin of Riley Strain, also wrote on Facebook: “I know this post has started to make it around now, and I just want to say we appreciate everyone for their kind words and prayers.

“At this time all we can do is pray and hope my baby cousin is found safe and sound. He is my best friend and we all love him very much. Please continue the prayers, but please try not to reach out to our family too much at this time while we are all waiting for updates.

“We will give updates when the time comes but please respect everyone’s privacy and try not to reach out to them. #prayersforriley”

Jeff Strain, an uncle of missing Riley Strain, also wrote: “I am at a loss for words right now but my family need prayers right now. My nephew Riley Strain went missing from downtown Nashville Friday night and has not been seen or heard from since,”

Chris Whiteid, who appears to be related to Strain, asked for prayers for the family and said they would appreciate not to receive too many questions as they themselves are in the dark as to what happened to Riley.

“Friends, we are asking for prayers, support and guidance for our family. Riley Strain went missing in downtown Nashville Friday night. Unfortunately we have not heard from him since that time. Local law enforcement are doing everything they can to find him and bring him back to us.

“We don’t know many details at this time. We ask that you please respect our privacy and not overload us with questions, as we ourselves are in the dark about what happened to Riley. Please pray for his safe return. Thank you all,”

Currently, there are no updates on this case but we would share them once we have them.

Missing persons

There are currently amber alerts out for two children who have gone missing in the United States much like Riley Strain.

Elijah Vue

The search for missing 3-year-old Elijah Vue in Two Rivers, Wisconsin continues.

Authorities have announced that search efforts have ended at the landfill1. Elijah Vue vanished from his mother’s boyfriend’s home in Two Rivers on Tuesday, February 20, 2024.

He had been sent 150 miles away from home for “disciplinary reasons,” and details now show that the little boy was subjected to lengthy time-outs and threats of cold showers if he misbehaved.

The mother of Elijah Vue took a photograph that showed him bruised and blindfolded days before he vanished, but she later deleted the image.

This revelation is among a trove of additional details contained in new court documents filed against the mother of Elijah Vue.

Volunteers have expanded the search for Elijah Vue to Green Bay, emphasizing the urgency of finding the missing child.

The grandmother of Elijah Vue has pleaded with the court not to release her daughter from jail, stating that she poses a “flight risk” and has a history of erratic behavior.

Sebastian Rogers

Sebastian Rogers, a 15-year-old with high-functioning autism, has been missing since the morning of February 26, 2024.

He vanished from his home in Hendersonville, Tennessee. When his mother, Katie Proudfoot, went to wake him up for school, she found his bed empty, and he was nowhere to be found.

Sebastian is described as being “very smart” and “not a mischievous child by any means.”

Despite extensive search efforts by state and local authorities, including the use of helicopters, drones, search-and-rescue dogs, and playing his favorite song, “Eye of the Tiger,” there has been no sign of Sebastian.

The search has now extended across state lines to a Kentucky landfill.

Mizzou

The University of Missouri (Mizzou or MU), where Riley Strain is enrolled, is a public land-grant research university in Columbia, Missouri.

It is Missouri’s largest university and the flagship of the four-campus University of Missouri System.

MU was founded in 1839 as the first public university west of the Mississippi River.

It has been a member of the Association of American Universities since 1908 and is classified among “R1: Doctoral Universities – Very high research activity”.

Enrolling 31,041 students in 2023, it offers more than 300 degree programs in thirteen major academic divisions.

Its Missouri School of Journalism, founded by Walter Williams in 1908, was established as the world’s first journalism school; it publishes a daily newspaper, the Columbia Missourian, and operates NBC affiliate KOMU.

Nashville, Tennessee, where Riley Strain went missing, is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census Nashville is the 21st most populous city in the United States, and the fourth most populous city in the southeastern U.S.

Located on the Cumberland River, the city is the center of the Nashville metropolitan area, and is one of the fastest growing in the nation.

Named for Francis Nash, a general of the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War, the city was founded in 1779.

The city grew quickly due to its strategic location as a port on the Cumberland River and, in the 19th century, a railroad center.

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