The weekslong search for missing student Riley Strain ended on Friday, when his body was found in the Cumberland River. Strain was found about eight miles away from his last reported sighting. According to the Metro Nashville Police Department, his death was accidental, The Tennesseean reported.
Metro Nashville Police Department spokesperson Kris Mumford revealed that though the final autopsy has not been completed, his preliminary autopsy indicated there is no evidence of foul play and his cause of death still “continues to appear accidental,” per The Tennessean.
After his body was recovered, Strain’s mother, Michelle Whiteid, addressed the public in a press conference, saying, “I just ask that you mamas out there hug your babies tight tonight, please.”
HIs father, Ryan Gilbert, said, “Riley’s captured the hearts of people across the country, and we thank everybody for their thoughts and prayers and their efforts on trying to find him,” per WKRN.
“To the people of Nashville, I can’t thank you enough for the support, the love, the encouragement that you’ve shown ... in some of our darkest hours,” Chris Whiteid, Strain’s stepfather, said, per The Tennessean. “The hugs, the prayers, the offers. I can’t say it enough. Thank you.”
The discovery of Strain’s body comes after two weeks of community effort to locate him. Strain’s family found help from the police, United Cajun Navy and volunteers from all over the country. While police worked on the ground and in the air to find Strain, volunteers assisted in the search.
It was a pair of TikTok content creators who found Strain’s bank card along the Cumberland River, and the United Cajun Navy assisted in ground and water searches.
Brandy Baenen, who helped find the bank card, said, “I just need them to know that there are people who do care as much as they do and even about Riley and about them themselves,” per WKRN.
David Flagg, incident commander with the United Cajun Navy, told WKRN, “When you hear a mama just wailing at the top of her lungs because she just lost her baby, it just crushes you, but I think they’ll be fine.”
“They are very, very strong in their Christian faith, and they know where Riley is, and they know that they’ll see him again someday in glory,” he continued.
In an interview with People magazine, Whiteid remembered the last conversation she had with her son over FaceTime and text. She recalled, “I said, ‘Well, you boys be safe. Make good choices. I love you guys.’ And he said, ‘I love you, too.’”
Search volunteers and community members gathered Friday night for a candlelight vigil in the spot where he was last seen near the James Robertson Parkway bridge. They prayed over Strain’s family, with some thanking the community for support during the search.