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James Paul Gracey missing: Jimmy's wallet found on beach near Shoko? Spain case compared to Riley Strain incident
James Paul Gracey or Jimmy, a 20-year-old University of Alabama student went missing in Barcelona, Spain, while on his Spring Break.
James Paul Gracey or Jimmy, a 20-year-old University of Alabama student went missing in Barcelona, Spain, while on his Spring Break. His mother, Therese Gracey posted about the disappearance on Facebook and sought help in finding her son.
While there's no update yet on the boy from Elmhurst, Illinois, local police have said that they've found his phone. Gracey was last seen in the area of Shoko, a beachfront nightclub. Authorities believe he left the club with an unknown person and they suspect ‘foul play’ in the case. A report also noted that Gracey was believed to have been talking to a brown-haired American female there, though it remains unclear if she is the person he left the club with.
Now, Abby Escobar, the true crime digital creator known as Abby Blabby, has claimed that Gracey's wallet was found down the beach.
“I was just informed that Jimmy Gracey’s wallet was found down on the beach,” she wrote on Facebook and added “Please continue to pray for his safe return! If you didn’t see my previous post, his church has started a 4-day rosary prayer campaign for him. See the last photo for details.”
However, there is no official confirmation about Gracey's wallet having been found. HT.com could not independently verify the claim made.
His family commented on authorities coming in possession of the phone, telling The US Sun “We’re not 100 per cent sure what the situation was because it was a bit hard to understand the police due to the language barrier but we believe that it was stolen. The cops found the phone on the person who stole it from [James].”
Jimmy Gracey case compared to Riley Strain's
Several people were quick to point out similarities to the Riley Strain case.
“I don’t get why these kids don’t stick together? When you go somewhere together, you leave together - that’s like Friendship 101. How many times are we going to hear about these stories (Riley Strain, Lucas Mattson, Alex Hendry, the list goes on & on),” one person wrote on X.
Another added “It brings me back to Riley Strain, Trenton Massey, Sudiksha Konanki & so many others.” Yet another person said “I thought of Riley Strain also. Praying he is found alive.”
On Facebook too, a person commented “Omg. This brings back memories of #RileyStrain,” to which the true crime content creator remarked “Right??? Remember his credit card was found down on the beach?.”
Strain, a Missouri college student, was found drowned in a Tennessee river two weeks after he was reported missing. This incident was in 2024. Abby noted that the Barcelona club was also right on the water. “It’s right on the water. I would imagine that he was intoxicated, although that’s just my speculation,” she wrote on Facebook.
Despite parallels being drawn, a key difference is that law enforcement had clarified at the start that they did not believe foul play was involved in Strain's case. However, that is not the opinion of authorities when it comes to Gracey's matter.
The University of Alabama student's disappearance is also being compared to the case of Sudiksha Konanki, the Indian-origin US student from the University of Pittsburgh who also disappeared at the age of 20. She was last seen on March 6, 2025 and was also on a Spring Break vacation with her friends, in the Dominican Republic.
As for Gracey, he was last seen wearing a white shirt, dark pants, and a chain with a gold rhinestone cross. Gracey's father Taras is reportedly already in Spain to help find his son, and his mother, Therese is expected to be headed there as well.
