Found Deceased TN - Riley Strain, 22, missing from a bar, Nashville, 8 March 2024

[MassGuy]

I seriously doubt Riley lost his ID. I truly believe his is a crime victim who local LE failed to investigate properly.

JMO

That is an astounding accusation considering there is not one iota of evidence to support it.

 

[gitana1]

I don't think anyone is suggesting that Riley was getting into fights or being combative. I think they were saying his extreme inebriation was putting other people at risk. Imagine a 6 foot 7 individual losing his balance walking up the stairs. He could have bowled over several other patrons in falling down the stairs. I don't know that he fell down the stairs but when I see how fast he was moving and his erratic arm movements in those videos he could have easily socked someone in the face unintentionally.

The reality of it is that Riley was really drunk. There's no getting around that. His friends chose to let him leave by himself. If I was his mother, I would think out of the two choices who should have had Riley's back, it would have been his friends, not the bar management to call him a cab, find out where he was staying and send him on his way. Even if he had gotten back to the hotel he didn't have any key to get in the room. And if his hotel was like many hotels, seeing an extremely drunk person entering their place of business without any ID or proof that he was staying there, he may have been given the boot there, too. I'm not sure why so many people don't understand that. Restaurants, bars and hotels are in the business to make money, not to endanger their patrons or staff members or being a virtual babysitter for some unknown quantity.

I’m betting his friends were also totally inebriated.

 

[Soulmagent]

I have always wondered about this and wondered if they “go off the path/sidewalk” to pee (very common if you’ve been drinking), lose their footing because of being under the influence and tragically fall into the river / water?

I live in a collage town , (so they say ) Next to a river . My area reports on local drownings every year. Sometimes 1 sometimes 3. In one year. Only one of the cases I have seen reported on in my local area ,involves an accidental ,forgot to breath scenario . This case is worse than that. We see this poor kid stumble away ..to somewhere? I am afraid.

 

[techpuppy]

I don't think anyone is suggesting that Riley was getting into fights or being combative. I think they were saying his extreme inebriation was putting other people at risk. Imagine a 6 foot 7 individual losing his balance walking up the stairs. He could have bowled over several other patrons in falling down the stairs. I don't know that he fell down the stairs but when I see how fast he was moving and his erratic arm movements in those videos he could have easily socked someone in the face unintentionally.

The reality of it is that Riley was really drunk. There's no getting around that. His friends chose to let him leave by himself. If I was his mother, I would think out of the two choices who should have had Riley's back, it would have been his friends, not the bar management to call him a cab, find out where he was staying and send him on his way. Even if he had gotten back to the hotel he didn't have any key to get in the room. And if his hotel was like many hotels, seeing an extremely drunk person entering their place of business without any ID or proof that he was staying there, he may have been given the boot there, too. I'm not sure why so many people don't understand that. Restaurants, bars and hotels are in the business to make money, not to endanger their patrons or staff members or being a virtual babysitter for some unknown quantity.

Hilton offers a digital key in most locations using the honors app on your cell phone. If he had activated that feature there'd be no need to carry the physical room key.

 

[LuckE0303]

The photo of the area where the card was found (if that is in fact accurate...) from above posts is taken from the North side of the Woodland Bridge, and looking downhill. After finding that on Google Street there is a short run of a wood post and rail fence right there, maybe 90 feet from the bridge abutment and almost parallel to Gay; past the end of that fence there is nothing between the sidewalk and the brush on the river bank. From the TikTok video, it appears the card was found within a few feet of the water.

The GH video puts him past the Hwy 41 Bridge. Those bridges are only maybe 320 feet apart but I don't think he got that far. It appears he was at least on the steep bank in the area of the Woodland Bridge. Once again the location of the "last bush" indicated by the homeless man would be indicative but it sure feels like he was off the sidewalk and near the river's edge well South of the Hwy 41 Bridge.

View attachment 491269

Thank you for commenting on proximity of the card to the water. It has been said the water was about 7 feet higher than it is currently running and I wondered if that area had been submerged when Riley went missing. If it was then we can see how his card may have ended up there if he fell in.

 

[halaliphone]

<modsnip: Quoted post was removed due to no link>

They were likely drunk too, so if they were responsible beings normally they wouldn't likely be at that time. They probably got back to hotel and crashed then realized he wasn't there when they got up. They may not have been in the same hotel room with him. Even if they did check his room and he didn't answer then they probably figured he was passed out.

Very similar. It made me sick all over again

 

[shetalksinstereo]

Might have had it in a deep pants pocket with the phone? Maybe later pulled them both out…..hard to say.

Maybe he has one of those phone cases that has a card slot attached? I could never use one, I'd be too stressed but I see them a lot.

 

[MollyHarps]

I’ve seen a few comments asking why the bouncers or his friends didn’t just put him in an Uber - looking at how intoxicated he looks on the CCTV footage I think most uber drivers would have refused to let him in anyway due to the risk of vomiting.

I think it’s easy to blame the friends here but they were all probably drunk to and not thinking straight - we also don’t know if Riley was often the ‘drunk one’ of the group - this sort of situation could have happened many times before where he is removed from the club but on these occasions he just went home.

I think the only policy that could be bought in that could help in these situations is one in regards to friends being able to regain entry to the club if they have had to walk a drunk friend home - it might encourage more friends to stick together.

 

[Universecalling]

I think the credit card is a red herring. I don't believe it was given back to him at the bar. If Riley's body is in the river, I do believe he was pushed.

JMO

Phone thefts frequent at Broadway honky-tonks

“I know like, five of my friends and every single one has gotten theirs stolen at Jason Aldean’s Rooftop”NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WZTV) – Metro Police said Jason Aldea

fox17.com

In bars as big as this one, credit cards aren’t kept by bartenders when you open a tab.
They’re slid and immediately given back to you. Tab stays open, and the bar doesn’t have to wrangle with logistics of keeping 50 or more credit cards on hand at any given hour.

 

[SMK777]

I’ve seen a few comments asking why the bouncers or his friends didn’t just put him in an Uber - looking at how intoxicated he looks on the CCTV footage I think most uber drivers would have refused to let him in anyway due to the risk of vomiting.

I think it’s easy to blame the friends here but they were all probably drunk to and not thinking straight - we also don’t know if Riley was often the ‘drunk one’ of the group - this sort of situation could have happened many times before where he is removed from the club but on these occasions he just went home.

I think the only policy that could be bought in that could help in these situations is one in regards to friends being able to regain entry to the club if they have had to walk a drunk friend home - it might encourage more friends to stick together.

It’s true that an Uber would be unlikely to want to transport a seriously inebriated person due to fear of vomiting or of belligerence.

It’s a shame Riley’s mother was unaware of what was taking place in real time— she could have called him, told him to sit down and stay put, while she called a private cab or police. Such a terrible waste and tragic ending for a good kid with a bright future.

 

[crcgirl]

I’ve seen a few comments asking why the bouncers or his friends didn’t just put him in an Uber - looking at how intoxicated he looks on the CCTV footage I think most uber drivers would have refused to let him in anyway due to the risk of vomiting.

I think it’s easy to blame the friends here but they were all probably drunk to and not thinking straight - we also don’t know if Riley was often the ‘drunk one’ of the group - this sort of situation could have happened many times before where he is removed from the club but on these occasions he just went home.

I think the only policy that could be bought in that could help in these situations is one in regards to friends being able to regain entry to the club if they have had to walk a drunk friend home - it might encourage more friends to stick together.

Allowing a patron to come back into a bar after leaving can result in violence. There are examples where someone comes back with a gun to settle a score. Not all bar fights are rowdy Some are over something said and would pass unnoticed by staff.

 

[PommyMommy]

MAR 18, 2024

Bank card belonging to missing college student in Nashville found

Surveillance video shows Strain walking in the wrong direction after leaving Luke Bryan’s bar Friday night.

mynews4.com

[...]

AC spotted the card Sunday morning, near the water.

“My stomach dropped,” said AC, who turned over the card to reveal Strain’s name. “My innate reaction was to be like, ‘Let’s keep looking.’”

[...]

BB said she had been searching homeless camps and the river bank since Tuesday. Sunday, the girls joined forces and their effort produced a significant piece of evidence.

Questions arose as to whether Strain’s case would be changed to a criminal investigation, from a missing person case, in light of the bank card discovery. A Metro Police spokesperson wrote WZTV in an email, “We do not have any evidence pointing to foul play at present.”

[...]

 

[MollyHarps]

Allowing a patron to come back into a bar after leaving can result in violence. There are examples where someone comes back with a gun to settle a score. Not all bar fights are rowdy Some are over something said and would pass unnoticed by staff.

Hi CRCGirl,

I’m not talking about when violence has occurred in a bar.

I’m talking about letting a customer return if he/she has walked their friend home for being too drunk. In these cases the returning customer would have no scores to settle and the friend would be safe at home.

 

[PommyMommy]

Video from the embankment of the Cumberland River where missing Mizzou student Riley Strain's bank card was found Sunday. https://trib.al/evOKX8H

https://twitter.com/x/status/1769698147754811562

 

[adot0902]

That is an astounding accusation considering there is not one iota of evidence to support it.

Yes, and I think it's time for my criminal minded self to bring some light to this. I mean this with ALL due respect, but drugging Riley isn't worth the cost of the roofie. You are going to get a locked iPhone albeit a good one, you aren't going to be able to resell it for much. Let's be real honest here there are great targets in Nashville lots of older people with tons of money, lots of single wealthy people for conferences, a college kid with probably $200 on his ATM card and a phone is not worth the effort. I'm not trying to be disparaging he is in college no one has a bunch of money in college, I just think IF (which I don't think this is happening) a bar targeting and robbing people with roofies a college student is not going to be the target. MOO IMO

 

[Sustained]

Video from the embankment of the Cumberland River where missing Mizzou student Riley Strain's bank card was found Sunday. https://trib.al/evOKX8H

https://twitter.com/x/status/1769698147754811562

Looking at that terrain, I can't see anyway Riley would have tumbled into the river unless he was either chased or somehow made it down the hill to the edge of the water.

 

[PommyMommy]

This timeline includes all three videos as well as the 911 call.

MAR 17, 2024

TIMELINE: what we know so far about MU student Riley Strain's disappearance

A detailed timeline of Riley Strain's missing person investigation.

www.komu.com

 

[Hanoi2009]

Yes, and I think it's time for my criminal minded self to bring some light to this. I mean this with ALL due respect, but drugging Riley isn't worth the cost of the roofie. You are going to get a locked iPhone albeit a good one, you aren't going to be able to resell it for much. Let's be real honest here there are great targets in Nashville lots of older people with tons of money, lots of single wealthy people for conferences, a college kid with probably $200 on his ATM card and a phone is not worth the effort. I'm not trying to be disparaging he is in college no one has a bunch of money in college, I just think IF (which I don't think this is happening) a bar targeting and robbing people with roofies a college student is not going to be the target. MOO IMO

I totally agree! He was very thin and does not appear to be that muscular, so he may be easier to subdue than someone who is very muscular, but he is still very tall, and I think that would be a deterrent. I have to believe there would be an easier target somewhere if robbery was the motive. I do not think he was drugged. I think it was a long day of drinking or a shorter night of heavy drinking- perhaps without much food to offset the effects of the alcohol. I do not think he was drugged. JMO.

 

[imstilla.grandma]

Lamar Advertising is now working to get billboards up across Nashville, hoping to bring any attention to the desperate search for the college senior.

“We hope that he’s found. We hope that we find out that he’s just gotten lost somewhere and that this helps people bring him back. So, it’s very important for us to communicate and participate this way,” said Jeremy Johnson, sales manager for Lamar Advertising Company.

Retracing Riley Strain’s steps in downtown Nashville

As the search for Strain continues, News 2 retraced his last known steps to give perspective on where the college senior was last seen downtown.

www.newsnationnow.com

 

[SMK777]

Lamar Advertising is now working to get billboards up across Nashville, hoping to bring any attention to the desperate search for the college senior.

“We hope that he’s found. We hope that we find out that he’s just gotten lost somewhere and that this helps people bring him back. So, it’s very important for us to communicate and participate this way,” said Jeremy Johnson, sales manager for Lamar Advertising Company.

Retracing Riley Strain’s steps in downtown Nashville

As the search for Strain continues, News 2 retraced his last known steps to give perspective on where the college senior was last seen downtown.

www.newsnationnow.com

That would be a wonderful thing, if he’s found safe. I just don’t know how realistic it is.