Riley Strain’s mom claims he told her drink tasted weird before going missing from bar and ending up dead

MISSOURI, UNITED STATES: Riley Strain's mother disclosed that her son, a senior at the University of Missouri, texted her on the night he went missing, expressing that his drink tasted strange.

The 22-year-old was reported missing in Nashville on March 8 after being ejected from Luke’s 32 Bridge.

His body was subsequently discovered in the Cumberland River by a passerby, as HIndustan Times reported.

Michelle Whiteid recounts conversation with her son 

In a recent conversation, Michelle Whiteid, Strain’s mother, recounted how her son ordered a rum and coke during a night out in Music City, accompanied by his fraternity brothers.

Michelle mentioned that the drink "didn’t taste good" according to Strain, who likened it to "barbecue."

Concerned, Whiteid urged Strain not to consume it, to which he responded that it sounded good but didn't taste so.

She speculated, "Maybe there was something in it that shouldn’t have been."

Witnesses and surveillance footage indicated that Strain appeared "very, very intoxicated" after being ejected from the bar.

Chris Whiteid, Strain’s stepfather, previously claimed that the bartender had cut him off for being overserved, but the establishment disagreed, asserting that Strain had only been served one alcoholic beverage.

Shortly after being escorted out by security, Strain went missing.

Foul play ruled out in Riley Strain's death

Notably, the bar has asserted that Riley consumed only one drink and had two glasses of water before being escorted out.

While not definitive evidence, this raises the possibility that he may have been drugged, given the history of drugging incidents in Nashville's nightlife scene.

While this explanation is considered plausible, it has also been postulated that Riley was already heavily intoxicated when he arrived at Luke's.

The bar has stated that they removed him due to his disruptive behavior, alleging he was already intoxicated.

They claim to have surveillance footage supporting this, although it has not yet been released.

Although Riley's death appears to be accidental according to the autopsy report, the toxicology report is still pending, leaving several questions unanswered.

Riley's family maintains their belief that something else occurred that night, rejecting the police investigation's conclusion of no foul play. After they ordered the autopsy report for a second time, Riley's stepfather Chris Whiteid claimed, “If he fell and truly fell in the water, and you can prove that to me, show me. I’ll accept it,”

He added, “But I can tell you from all the stuff that we’ve done as far as search and looking, taking pictures — I don’t feel like it’s really possible that happened. He may have fallen, but someone helped him in the water,”

In the interview, Riley's mother criticized his friends. It's worth noting that none of them accompanied Riley that night, as he assured them he was fine and would meet them at the hotel later. Now, it appears his mother is upset with them.

Internet reacts to grieving parents' claims

Many offered their condolences to the family after the mourning parents' assertions.

One Internet user claimed, "So he called his mom from the bar? Who does that? I think he took something and it led to this. I sadly feel that these parents are in denial and don't want to accept that he made a bad choice and the unfortunately the consequences were deadly."

Another added, "I believe he was ! Poor parents I couldn’t imagine" The third user commented, "This poor woman! She is going through the stages of grief. I can't imagine the pain."

A fourth wrote, "It's sad, the whole situation is horrible. Roofies have no taste. Unfortunately unless there's new footage, they may never know exactly what happened. But severe intoxication, and/or mixed with even one other drug can have severe consequences. They seem to want to blame someone, even though friends didn't go with him and he said he'd meet them back at the hotel, his friends are not to blame. There has to be some accountability on his own part even though it's so tragic."

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.