Body of missing Missouri student Riley Strain found in Nashville river

The body of missing University of Missouri student Riley Strain has been located in West Nashville after he disappeared two weeks ago.

Mr Strain’s body was discovered approximately 8 miles from downtown Nashville in the Cumberland River. Workers were removing an object from the river when they stumbled upon Mr Strain’s body.

According to police, Mr Strain was wearing his distinctive black and white shirt when he was found, contradicting earlier claims by that the shirt had been taken and worn by a man named Ross.

Police said an initial analysis of Mr Strain’s body showed no evidence that of foul play, and that an autopsy is pending.

Nashville Police Chief John Drake held a press conference on Friday, confirming that it was Mr Strain’s body that was recovered from the river.

He further said that an autopsy will likely be conducted sometime on Friday.

Mr Drake made note of a grim detail during the presser that could shed some light on why it took so long to find Mr Strain; a body matching Mr Strain’s height and weight would typically take approximately 14 to 20 days to surface after being sumberged in a body of water. He said the police were expecting to find him sometime this week as a result.

Mr Strain, 22, was visiting Nashville with his fraternity brothers for an annual spring formal trip. On 8 March, he was kicked out of country star Luke Bryan's 32BRIDGE bar, reportedly for being intoxicated.

After being kicked out, Mr Strain spoke with his friends on the phone and told them he would return to their hotel. Rather than doing so, he began walking in the opposite direction, toward the Cumberland River.

The last signal sent from Mr Strain's phone placed him in the proximity of a park located near the river's banks.

Mr Strain's friends eventually realised that he had not returned to the hotel. They called 911 to report Mr Strain missing at 1:46am on Saturday, 9 March.

That kicked off a two week search in Nashville. Police, volunteers, and Mr Strain's friends and family from Missouri wandered the streets and questioned locals in an attempt to find the missing student.

The Metropolitan Nashville Police Department used sonar-equipped boats to search the Cumberlands River's waters for any sign of Mr Strain while a helicopter and drone inspected the nearby riverbanks.

Those searches turned up no evidence that Mr Strain had fallen into the river.

Police continued to push for answers, and told the public relatively early that they believed there had been no foul play involved in the student's disappearance.

Two women assisting in the search for Mr Strain eventually discovered his bank card discarded on the banks of the Cumberland River. Homeless residents told police they'd seen him wandering near the banks on the night of the disappearance, and eventually even a police officer revealed he'd had a chance, albeit brief, encounter with the student the night he disappeared.