By Sophia Glenn
Riley Strain was a 22-year-old business student studying at the University of Missouri who was found dead two weeks after he went missing on March 8, 2024. The young man, who would have graduated college in just a few weeks, was on a trip to Nashville, TN. Strain was accompanied by his Delta Chi Fraternity brothers, where they would have their spring fraternity formal event. The timeline of events regarding his disappearance has people questioning what happened to Riley.
On March 8, Riley and his fraternity brothers took to the bars in downtown Nashville to explore and enjoy their one last trip together before graduation in May. Riley even FaceTimed his mom at one of the bars to check in, and according to his mother, that was not out of the ordinary for her son.
Riley and his friends then went to Luke’s 32 Bridge Food + Drink, artist Luke Bryan’s popular bar in Nashville. According to police, credit card receipts show Riley to have ordered one alcoholic drink and two glasses of water at Luke’s bar. Riley was not there long before security escorted him out of the bar.
The bar released a statement later saying they asked Riley to leave because he was too intoxicated. According to an interview with PEOPLE, the TC Restaurant Group, which oversees Luke’s, said, “At 9:35 p.m., our security team made a decision based on our conduct standards to escort him from the venue through our Broadway exit at the front of our building.”
Members of Delta Chi claimed they tried to follow Riley out of the bar, but allegedly, the bouncers did not let them and told them to stay inside and pay their tab, leaving Riley alone. Strains fraternity brothers called Strain, but he said he was returning to Tempo Hotel Riley, where they were all staying for the weekend.
Approximately 12 minutes after leaving the bar, surveillance video shows Riley crossing 1st Ave N and Grey Street at 9:47, walking in the opposite direction of the hotel he was supposedly going to. Around the same time, a police officer’s body cam footage was also released. Riley greets the officer, asking, “Hey, how ya doin’?” The officer responds with a few quick words before Riley continues walking.
Riley was last seen on video surveillance at 9:52 p.m., and his last text message to one of his female friends read, “Good lops.” Some theorize the text might mean “low on power, sorry,” yet others say they believe it to be a simple typo since his phone was not on low power when that message was sent.
Riley was reported missing early the following day when his friends noticed he had not returned to the hotel the night before. When Riley’s parents heard the news, they immediately made the seven-hour trip down from Missouri to help find their son.
The following two weeks consisted of sleepless nights for Riley’s friends and family while they searched alongside Nashville police, search and rescue teams, and volunteers from all over.
Two young women helping search for Riley were live streaming on TikTok while exploring the banks of the Cumberland River when one girl found Riley’s debit card. This led law enforcement to search further down the river.
After working tirelessly to locate Riley, his body was found on Friday, March 22, floating in the Cumberland River around 8 miles from Nashville. Riley was found with only his shirt and watch on his body. The medical examiner said they found no water in Strain’s lungs, and his body had no visible cuts, scrapes, or bruises. So far, no foul play has been suspected by law enforcement, yet his parents told NewsNation they suspect “someone helped him into the water” and have ordered a second autopsy.
The media has criticized and questioned Riley’s fraternity brothers for reportedly not helping in the search for Riley. Yet, they still attended their spring formal the day after he had disappeared. The investigation into what happened to Riley is still ongoing, and toxicology reports are also in the works.