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Police search Cumberland River for missing Nashville man

dakota bingham
Posted at 4:47 PM, Oct 13, 2021
and last updated 2021-10-15 11:12:51-04

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Family, friends and police are continuing the search for a man who went missing on Sunday night after leaving a bar in East Nashville.

UPDATE: Bingham's body was found Friday morning by a tugboat operator near Rock Harbor Marina.

Police said on Wednesday, investigators located surveillance video showing a man, believed to be missing 28-year-old Dakota Bingham, struggling to stay afloat in the Cumberland River just after midnight on Monday.

A Metro police helicopter is checking the river for any sign of him. MNPD resumed the search Thursday morning.

Police said Bingham was last seen by friends at Noble's Kitchen & Beer Hall on Main Street in the Five Points area. He left the bar around 11:15 p.m.

Friends said he tried to get a Lyft back to his Midtown home, but instead he started walking.

Surveillance video from a nearby business showed Bingham walking to Fifth and Main Street, where he got on a scooter for a short amount of time, then got off and walked.

He was then seen at the TA Truck Stop on N. First Street around midnight. Investigators said this is the last area and time his phone was detected.

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He was reported missing on Monday by his friend Lexi Johnisee, who said she had not heard from him. They were together Sunday night at Noble's.

"He was drinking so he's vulnerable to anything out here," Johnisee said. "We're all scared. We're just trying to do everything we can on foot for peace of mind."

Bingham's mom and girlfriend both flew from California to Nashville to help search for him.

They said his car is still at his home and there's no record of him at any of the local hospitals or jails.

"My gut tells me that he's already gone because they would've found him by now," said Rhonda Bingham, his mother. "I just want to take my son home."

Friends and family have started the hashtag #FindDakota. They say if you have any tips or would like to post about him on social media, use that hashtag.

"We know we have to stay strong and positive to get it done but you know there's a moment you feel really helpless too," said his girlfriend Ruthanne Gobille.

Anyone with information on where Bingham may be is asked to call Metro police at 615-862-8600.