Parents of student Riley Strain: ‘Unsure’ about last text

Editor’s note: The latest update on Riley Strain.

(NewsNation) — The parents of missing Missouri student Riley Strain say they’re unaware who he last communicated with before he disappeared while on a trip earlier this month in Nashville, Tennessee.

Family friend Chris Dingman told NewsNation’s Elizabeth Vargas on Monday that Strain’s last communication was an unclear text message he sent to a new girl he was seeing.

“She texted him to see how he was doing, if he was having fun. He sent kind of a scripted text back to her saying ‘Good lops,'” Dingman said Monday during an interview on “Elizabeth Vargas Reports.”

However, Strain’s mother, Michelle Whiteid, told NewsNation’s Ashleigh Banfield she wasn’t sure who that could be.

“I’m not sure … He’s got several friends that are female, male. I don’t know the individual he talked to at that time,” Whiteid said on “Banfield.”

The University of Missouri college senior vanished March 8 after reportedly being removed from a downtown bar. Authorities have been scrambling to retrace his steps in a bid to unravel the circumstances of his disappearance.

On Sunday, Strain’s bank card was discovered on the embankment of the Cumberland River, according to a statement from Metro Nashville Police.

On Monday, newly released body camera footage shows Strain’s brief interaction with a Nashville officer on the night of his disappearance.

Nashville police reiterated that there is currently no indication of foul play in Strain’s disappearance. However, Strain’s stepfather Chris Whiteid told “Banfield” their family has become frustrated with the investigation.

“We’ve heard multiple people that have tried to call crime-stoppers and leave tips and told they don’t know anything about the Riley Strain case. Lots of confusion. We’re struggling. We’re 10 days in. It’s disheartening,” Whiteid said.

NewsNation’s Damita Menezes contributed to this report.