The mysterious circumstances leading up to the disappearance and death of Riley Strain, a 22-year-old student from the University of Missouri, may have gained a chilling piece of evidence as his mother, Michelle Whiteid, has shared messages that could be of significance. On March 8, the same night that Strain vanished in Nashville, he texted his mother expressing concerns about a drink he ordered while out with his fraternity brothers, according to a New York Post report.
Strain had ordered a rum and coke but raised an eyebrow when the drink did not meet his expectations. "It didn’t taste good," Strain texted his mother, as per an interview Whiteid gave to NewsNation. Upon receiving her son's message, Whiteid advised, "He probably shouldn’t drink it." The evening took a darker turn when Whiteid recounted her son further elaborated that "it tastes like barbecue." To which she responded, "Well, that sounds awful," and he replied, "Well, it sounds good, but it’s not," People magazine reported.
Earlier on the night of his disappearance, Strain visited multiple bars, including Luke Bryan’s restaurant and bar in Nashville, together with members of his Delta Chi fraternity. Strain disappeared after getting kicked out of a downtown bar, and his body was discovered two weeks later in a river in Nashville. The text messages to his mother were among the last communications Strain made before he went missing, adding a layer of concern to the already harrowing ordeal the family is facing, NewsNationNow.com detailed.
Whiteid discussed not just the text messages about her son's odd-tasting drink but also her interactions with Riley’s fraternity brothers since her son’s death, seeking answers about the events that led to this tragedy. The family's quest for what happened that fateful night in Tennessee continues as they piece together Riley Strain's last known movements and communications in an effort to understand the circumstances surrounding his untimely passing. Michelle Whiteid, along with Strain's family, talked to NewsNation’s Brian Entin in an extended exclusive interview, exploring these distressing details and more.
