Riley Strain’s missing belt could be key to solving mysterious death: family friend (2024)
Riley Strain was wearing a belt the night he vanished and loved ones believe the missing article of clothing “raises more questions” about the college student’s mysterious death.
“Everybody we’ve talked to about that as soon as we found out he had a belt on that night was like, ‘Wow, that totally changes the dynamics of why those articles are missing,'” family friend Chris Dingman said Tuesday on NewsNations’ “Elizabeth Vargas Reports.”
Strain, 22, was pulled from the Cumberland Riverwearing only his shirt and watch on March 22, two weeks after he was thrown out of country star Luke Bryan’s honky tonk bar.
The University of Missouri student had been wearing his favorite belt that night, which Dingman claimed should have prevented his pants from being ripped off from a fall into the water or by a strong current.
“Riley had a swimmer’s body … With the belt being on his hips, that would have been even more hard for the pants to come off in the water. It literally would have been snug to him, it would have been riding on his hips,” Dingman said.
“The belt is a big piece of the puzzle that we now have and once again raises more questions.”
The grieving friend also claimed that investigators are eyeing several persons of interest in the case — despite their preliminary autopsy report indicating that Strain died of “accidental” causes.
Strain’s family has struggled to accept that the college student may have drowned, with Dingman pointing out that “he was actually an excellent swimmer.”
Strain was found with no water in his lungs, as is typical with drowning victims.
The family ordered a second, private autopsy to dig deeper into the case after Metro Nashville investigators ruled Strain suffered no obvious signs of trauma.
Digman had previously suggested that homeless people living in a nearby encampment might hold the answers to the family’s burning questions.
Strain wandered the streets of Nashville alone March 8 when he was kicked out of Luke’s 32 Bridge Food + Drinkin Nashville on March 8.
He told his University of Missouri fraternity brothers that he was going back to his hotel room, but surveillance footage showed him making a wrong turn toward the river, with his cell phone last pinging a mile from the bar.
“It’s very brutal on the family right now. We’re at the stage where we want answers. We’re blessed to bring Riley home, but now, we want answers,” Dingman said.
His body was found without pants, cowboy boots and his wallet when he was discovered in Nashville. “Riley had a swimmer's body,” family friend Chris Dingman said during an appearance on NewsNation's Elizabeth Vargas Reports. “(The belt) would have been snug to him, riding on his hips. …
Riley Strain's death was ruled an accident, but his family still has questions about what happened to the 22-year-old after he was kicked out of a Nashville bar. Here's every twist the case has taken.
“Riley had a swimmer's body. [The belt] would have been snug to him, riding on his hips. … As soon as we found out he had a belt on that night, [it] totally changes the dynamics of why those articles are missing," family spokesperson Chris Dingman said on 'Elizabeth Vargas Reports', per NewsNation.
March 22, 2024: Police confirmed a body found in the Cumberland River in West Nashville is that of Riley Strain. Investigators said there were no signs of foul play and an autopsy is being performed. “Hug your babies tight tonight, please. Please for me,” Strain's mother said.
The case remains open, and now the world-renowned expert in body decomposition questions what happened to Riley. Riley was fully clothed in the security video the night he disappeared.
The body of Riley Strain, a missing Missouri student, has been found in a West Nashville river. No foul play is suspected, police said. NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- The family of Riley Strain has reportedly ordered a second autopsy, family friend Chris Dingman confirmed to a local news station.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — On the morning of Friday, March 22, the body of missing college student Riley Strain was recovered from the Cumberland River. This was approximately eight miles from downtown Nashville where he was last seen on surveillance video after being asked to leave Luke's 32 Bridge bar.
In a newly released email, it's confirmed that Riley Strain's friends were not forced to stay at Luke Bryan's bar “to pay a tab” after Riley was kicked out. His friends chose to stay at the bar and to continue having fun.
The last bar to serve Strain was Luke's 32 Bridge Food + Drink, which is owned by country singer Luke Bryan. The bar told NBC News in a statement last week that security kicked Strain out at about 9:35 p.m. “based on our conduct standards," but noted that Strain was served only one alcoholic drink and two waters.
His body was discovered two weeks later, about 8 miles from where he was last seen. Strain was missing his wallet, pants and boots. Strain's family said he had been wearing a belt that night, which should have secured his pants.
(NewsNation) — When his body was recovered from the Cumberland River, Riley Strain was not wearing his pants, wallet or cowboy boots he had on the night he went missing, leaving his family and friends grappling for answers, according to a family friend.
Missing University of Missouri student Riley Strain's body has been found in a river in West Nashville, the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department confirmed on Friday. They said there were no signs of foul play.
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — Springfield native Riley Strain was brought to the national spotlight just days after he was reported missing by his fraternity brothers. It all started just after 9:30 p.m. on Friday, March 8 when he was kicked out of Luke Bryan's bar in Nashville.
Riley Strain was found dead two weeks after he disappeared. The University of Missouri student went missing after he was asked to leave Luke Bryan's bar in Nashville on March 8. The 22-year-old was last seen by his friends at Luke's 32 Bridge Food + Drink, according to the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department.
When Strain's body was recovered, he wasn't wearing his pants, wallet or cowboy boots he had on the night he went missing. The University of Missouri student, 22, was last seen March 8, when he vanished during a night out with friends in downtown Nashville.
The family of Riley Strain is still searching for answers after he was found dead without his wallet or the pants and cowboy boots he wore the night he disappeared, according to a family friend.
Following claims that Strain had been overserved alcohol, Bryan's bar quickly issued a statement denying the allegation. TC Restaurant Group, which operates Bryan's bar, said, "During Riley's visit to Luke's 32 Bridge, our records show he purchased and was served one alcoholic drink and two waters.
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