The body of University of Missouri student Riley Strain, who went missing earlier this month after being kicked out of a Nashville bar on a trip with fraternity brothers, was found Friday in a river, police said.
“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.
No foul play is suspected, but an autopsy has been scheduled, police said.
A worker at a company located near the river clearing debris from the shoreline discovered a body floating in the water near 61st Avenue North around 7:30 a.m. and notified authorities.
The fire department worked quickly to remove the body from the water before cops confirmed it was the 22-year-old a few hours later.
Police Chief John Drake told reporters Strain had been wearing the same shirt, watch and “other identifying items” that initially led investigators to believe they had found the missing student.
His body was found exactly two weeks after he was last seen.
Strain was visiting the Music City with his Delta Chi fraternity brothers when he vanished after leaving country star Luke Bryan’s honky-tonk bar, Luke’s 32 Bridge, on March 8.
Over the next two weeks, authorities followed a breadcrumb trail of phone pings and grainy surveillance footage, even finding a bank card in his name on the shore of the river earlier this week.
The 6-foot-7 finance major purchased one alcoholic drink and two drinks of water during his visit to the watering hole, according to TC Restaurant Group — the operator and owner of Luke’s 32 Bridge.
The bar shared that security decided to boot Strain from the nightspot based on their “conduct standards” due to Strain’s behavior, escorting him 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.”
Strain told his friends he would meet them at their room at the Tempo by Hilton, about five blocks from the bar.
But Strain never returned.
He was seemingly captured on surveillance footage crossing Gay Street around 9:47 p.m. after leaving the bar — about a 17-minute walk from Luke’s 32 Bridge and in the opposite direction of the hotel, according to Nashville police.
He was then spotted on Nashville Police Officer Reginald Young’s bodycam while he walked down Gay Street, the department posted on X.
Young, who was in the area investigating a reported vehicle burglary, briefly interacted with Strain, asking him how he was doing, to which the Missouri senior replied: “Good.”
Strain did not appear to be in any distress during their short interaction.
A local homeless man claimed he saw a “very, very intoxicated” Strain almost fall over the edge of a trail into the Cumberland River.
Police say Strain was spotted one final time on Gay Street at 9:52 p.m. but shared that “No video has been discovered that shows Riley away from Gay St. after the 9:52 p.m. timeframe.”
Strain wasn’t reported as missing until about four hours after he was escorted out of Luke’s 32 Bridge, at 1:35 a.m., when a friend returned to their hotel to find him not in the room.
What to know about the mysterious disappearance and death of Riley Strain
- College student Riley Strain, 22, went missing after being kicked out of Luke’s 32 Bridge Food + Drink in Nashville on March 8, 2024. Strain told his University of Missouri fraternity brothers that he was going back to his hotel room, but never arrived or contacted his friends.
- Surveillance footage shows him walking toward the hotel before making a wrong turn. His cellphone last pinged about a mile from the bar. A video saw Strain jogging away from his hotel before his disappearance.
- According to the Luke Bryan-owned bar, Strain only purchased one alcoholic drink and two waters the night he went missing. The 22-year-old’s parents have claimed he was “overserved.”
- The student’s bank card was found days later on an embankment of the Cumberland River by two TikTokkers searching the area.
- A local homeless man allegedly saw a “very, very intoxicated” Strain almost fall over the edge of a trail into the river. Strain was also spotted by a police officer near the river, according to body camera footage.
- Strain’s body was found in the river on Saturday by workers clearing the river of debris. According to a preliminary autopsy, Strain’s death was “accidental.”
His phone last pinged between 10 and 10:30 p.m. in the area of Public Square Park, located near the sheriff’s office and the Cumberland River.
A girl Strain had been romantically involved with said she texted him on the night of his disappearance “to see how he was doing” on the trip.
His Delta Chi fraternity brother Chris Dingman said the girl received a bizarre “scripted text” from Strain saying “Good lops.”
Dingman said the girl had trouble understanding what the text meant and resorted to Googling its meaning.
Strain’s fraternity brother noted that the text highlighted his friend’s mental state that night.
On March 17, police found Strain’s bank card on the embankment of the river, but the card had not been used since he went missing.
As the search intensified, the United Cajun Navy — a nonprofit that helps organize search and rescues during natural disasters — joined in the efforts.
After Strain’s body was discovered, the group stood down in their search, later taking to Facebook to thank those who had lent a hand.
“We regret that the search for Riley Strain didn’t end joyfully, but oftentimes the closure outweighs the unknown,” the group’s statement reads in part.
“Riley’s family gets a chance to bring him home and say goodbye in their own way.”
The United Cajun Navy did not respond to The Post’s request for comment.
In a statement provided to The Post Friday, Delta Chi Fraternity spoke glowingly of their departed brother.
“The Delta Chi Fraternity is deeply saddened by the tragic passing of our esteemed fraternity brother, Riley Strain,” it wrote.
“Our hearts go out to Riley’s family and loved ones during this incredibly difficult time as we work to provide support and resources to all those affected by this tragedy.”
Strain’s stepfather, Chris Whiteid, and his mother, Michelle Whiteid, who earlier this week tearfully told reporters she was holding out hope her son would be found alive, could not be reached for comment Friday.
