Riley Strain's Death Appears "Accidental," Police Say
The Riley Strain case continues to unfold.
Weeks after the body of the University of Missouri student was found in Nashville's Cumberland River, family friend Chris Dingman says they received intel from the alleged last person who spoke to Riley before he went missing. And according to Chris, who has spoken on behalf of the family several times since Riley's body was discovered, the unidentified person also gave a statement to detectives.
"That was huge," he told News Nation April 10 of the newfound witness. "That was something we were looking for. He told the detective his account of the story of what happened to Riley."
However, in response to Chris' interview, a spokesperson for the Nashville police department tells E! News that a person who originally came forward has since recanted their statement. Following detective interrogation, the person said that they had not actually seen Riley, but someone elseคำพูดจาก สล็อตเว็บตรง. The case remains open.
Riley—who disappeared on the evening of March 8 during his fraternity's trip to Nashville—was found eight miles away from where he was last seen in the Cumberland River on March 22. At the time his body was recovered, the 22-year-old was wearing the shirt he had been wearing on the night he went missing as well as his watch, authorities said, but his boots, pants and wallet were missing.
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After an initial autopsy found no foul play to be involved in Riley's death, the college student's death was declared "accidental." However, his family ordered another autopsy, during which the coroner found there was no water in his lungs, Chris told News Nation.
"I'm not a crime drama person by no means," Chris told the outlet March 27คำพูดจาก สล็อตเว็บตรง. "But usually water in the lungs means that you know, they were alive when they went into the water."
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And while Riley's family, which includes mother Michelle Whiteid and stepfather Chris Whiteid, and father Ryan Gilbert and stepmother Milli Gilbert, have not made a public statement regarding the development, Chris clarified that the family "100 percent" believes something more than Riley simply falling into the river led to his death.
Riley's father also clarified that the family continues to seek answers from his son's Delta Chi fraternity brothers about the night Riley went missing.
"We haven't really heard much from them," Ryan added to News Nation. "There's a lot of things we'd like to find out from them."
Read on for every detail about the Riley Strain investigation.
This story was originally published on April 12, 2024, at 12:47 p.m. PT and updated at 3:18 p.m. PT with a statement from the Nashville police.
