Tiera Strand: Body of missing Texas mom found in ditch days after she was attacked in downtown bar
AUSTIN, TEXAS: The body of a 25-year-old mother who was reported missing after she was allegedly attacked by several women in a downtown bar in Texas was discovered 70 miles away in a ditch off a road, according to her family members who saw a cellphone video of the attack.
On Friday morning, April 20, a passerby found the body of Tiera Strand in a roadside ditch, five days after she was reported missing. Officials said the cause of her death will be determined after an autopsy, as per the news release from the Bell County Sheriff's Office, reported Law and Crime.
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Strand's daughter 'calls her phone all the time asking for her'
Talking to the outlet, Strand's sister Mariah Herron said she is sad, angry, and confused. Herron said that her sister's only daughter does not know about her mother's death. The six-year-old is currently with her grandfather. "She calls her phone all the time asking for her. That’s the hardest part," Herron said. She said that her sister was looking forward to getting her high school diploma by graduating from a continuing education program in May. To get into the US Navy, Strand had been talking to a recruiter.
"She was excited about the next step of her life. You’re talking to her one day. You wonder where she is, the next. Days later, you have to come to the realization that she’s not coming home alive," Herron spoke emotionally.
Strand's family plans to hire a private investigator
The family is currently planning Strand's funeral after they receive her body back medical examiner's office. They are also planning to hire a private investigator to learn more about her being brutally attacked in a crowd and more details of the case.
According to the description of a GoFundMe page set up by Herron to help the family to meet the funeral expenses, Strand went missing "after being violently jumped on E 6th Street in Downtown Austin. Her family went five days with no answers or leads from police until April 21 when we got the call that morning that her body was found 70 miles from home. Our goal is to get justice for Tiera and the mishandling of her case."
According to the Bell County Sheriff’s Department, a joint investigation with the Austin Police Department’s homicide unit was conducted. However, authorities have not released further details of Strand's case.
