BELL COUNTY, Texas (KXXV) — The Bell County Sheriff's Office released new video showing the last known moments of 25-year-old Tiara Strand, hoping the public can help identify a person of interest seen walking with her before her death.
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Strand went missing from 6th Street in Austin after a night out with friends in April 2023. Days later, her body was found in a ditch north of Temple.
The string of videos shows Strand's last moments with an unknown man. Investigators believe the man is familiar with the Bell County area due to the location where her body was found. Authorities said previous attempts to identify the man, including video enhancement by various agencies, have failed.
"We need your help," Sheriff Bill Cooke said.
"Those things to this point have failed, um. Video enhancement, a lot of those agencies that were listed there have tried with that. Um, and so at the three-year mark, um. We are reaching out to the public," Corey Powell said.
It has been three years without answers for Strand's family, and the sheriff's office is hoping the public can help bring them closure.
"Whoever did this has had three years of just freedom. And they know they did this to a person. They know they destroyed a family. They took a lot from. An entire community of people," Mariah Herron, Tiera's sister, said.
"Boy, I tell you what, it's painful that we don't have Tiara there with us, stirring up trouble, stirring up trouble," Bruce Herron said.
"Oh my God, that. She was always the life of the party," Mariah Herron said. "I just think there was a lack of like. You know, girl code that happened that night, and there wasn't much guilt or remorse."
"And of course you dread another three years or four years or two years. It's just, it's just hard, so. Uh, you get hopeful, you know, hoping that something comes to where you can have closure, but Um, it's just been, just a very difficult, uh, time for me, so," Monica Herron, Tiera's Mother, said.
From the Bell County Sheriff's Office:
"On April 21, 2023, the Bell County Sheriff’s Office was called to the 1300 block of Berger Road, near Lower Troy Road, just north of Temple in rural Bell County. Where a citizen located Tiera Strand's body. An equivocal death investigation was started, and the Sheriff’s Office has been assisted by the Texas Rangers, the Texas Department of Public Safety, the Austin Police Department, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the United States Army-Criminal Investigations Division, the United States Navy Criminal Investigations Services, and the United States Department of Justice-Regional Organized Crime Information Center.
The investigation determined that on April 15, 2023, and into the early morning hours of April 16, 2023, Tiera was out with friends on 6th Street in Austin, Texas. Tiera was separated from her friends just before 2:00 am. Video surveillance and body-worn camera footage have been obtained from the Austin Police Department.
The video footage reveals Tiera walking in the 6th Street area, presumably looking for her friends. At approximately 2:19 am, an unidentified male, who is a person of interest, was observed walking with Tiera. Several video clips show this male and Tiera walking back and forth on 6th Street until 2:41 am, when they were seen entering the parking lot of the Wendy’s Restaurant at 7th and Interstate 35. This is the last time Tiera was captured on video that has been recovered by law enforcement.
Investigators have further searched for video prior to this male being in Tiera's company. He is first seen around 1:30 am, when he approaches two specific groups of females.
The first was at the corner of 6th and Trinity, where the male was speaking with two females, and it appears that a cellular phone was passed between one of the females and the male. (POI 6th Trinity Talking w/ still shot)
The second interaction occurred on Trinity, between 6th and 7th Streets. The video captures the interaction between a group of females and the person of interest. One female is seen lunging at the male and is pulled back by a member of her group. (POI Altercation)
Additional videos show the male captured on various body-worn cameras on 6th Street between Trinity Street and San Jacinto Blvd. However, the video's quality has limited identification of the male. This has been a struggle for the investigation. However, by releasing the best videos we have, we are hopeful that the public could provide information that would lead to an identification.
In these videos, the male appears to have a short haircut, wears earrings in both ears, and has military-style wraparound eyeglasses; he is muscular in appearance, smokes, and, at one point, makes a turn resembling a military-style movement. Upon review of the videos, the male is reluctant to come into close contact with law enforcement and is seen several times turning his head away from the approaching officers during their normal patrol duties. (POI walking away from APD, POI walking towards APD 1, POI walking towards APD 2, POI walking towards APD 3, & POI on curb)
The videos mentioned above are from before the person of interest contacted Tiera.
Additional videos being released are from the Austin Police Department Halo camera system. Two videos show the person of interest with Tiera. The first shows the male smoking, which had not been seen in other videos that captured him. (POI w Strand smoking)
The last video captures the person of interest with Tiera on 6th Street, crossing under Interstate 35. They cross the northbound service road onto the sidewalk, then enter Wendy’s parking lot at the corner of 7th and the service road. This is the last image we have of Tiera. (Last Seen)
Additionally, we have added still photos of the person of interest, again with limited quality. We have also provided images taken on April 16, 2023, of the area in which Tiera was located.
The investigation continues along other avenues, including additional laboratory testing. Today, our hope is to release a series of videos and still shots to generate leads for further investigation. We are hopeful that the public will come forward with even the smallest information. The information that they think is nothing could be a piece that we do not have.
The Bell County Sheriff’s Office has set up both a telephone tip line and an email address to provide information. The phone number for the tip line is 254-933-5539, where callers can leave a voicemail that will be sent to investigators immediately.
Additionally, information can be provided to investigators by emailing Sheriff.Tips@bellcounty.texas.gov.
Finally, information can be provided to Bell County Crime Stoppers by calling 254-526-8477 or via the webpage at https://bellcountycrimestoppers.com/."
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