Woman Found In Mississippi River After A Memphis Boat Party
Tamia Taylor’s body has been found after going missing from a riverboat birthday cruise, PEOPLE reports.
The 21-year-old disappeared after going to Memphis to celebrate her birthday with friends on Sept. 9. The Memphis Police Department released a statement on Sept 12, saying her friends didn’t see Taylor once the boat returned to the dock.
“Miss Taylor boarded the Island Queen Booze Cruise at approximately 11:30 p.m. on Saturday evening, September 9, 2023, but was not seen by her companions after the boat returned to the dock and everyone offloaded,” the statement read.
“There were two exits on the boat for patrons to offload at the conclusion of the ride.”
Her mother drove to Memphis to file a missing persons report after she failed to get in touch with her. MPD released another statement on Sept. 23 after a body was “recovered on the Arkansas side of the Mississippi River.”
Her body was positively identified on Sept. 27.
The owners of the boat, Memphis Riverboats, said in a statement that they had “no reason to believe she could have gone overboard” and had video footage to prove it.
“We can confirm from video footage circling around that she was last seen on the boat as the boat was pulling into the Harbor, where we dock our boats,” the company wrote.
“We hope she is found safe and returns home.”
Black women in Memphis have gone missing at alarming rates. In early 2023, Jacqulyn Vail, 33, and Tanna Stevenson, 63, had missing persons reports filed.
Unfortunately, Stevenson was found dead in February, according to ABC 24. However, the Dock Ellis Foundation is working tirelessly to make sure their names aren’t forgotten. The organization’s mission is to locate missing women and raise awareness about missing minorities, including Taylor.
“When we go missing, we go missing usually from our neighborhoods,” CEO Jasmine Ellis said.
“We are usually with our friends. We are usually with people that we feel comfortable around, or we are out doing things most normal people do.”
Ellis’ sentiments coincide with Shanquella Robinson’s case – the young women who passed away on her trip to Mexico with friends in 2022.
The case remains unsolved.
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