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A newly-graduated teenager who vanished from a four-day party had a fractured skull, broken ribs and his teeth were scattered around him when he was found naked and dead on the side of a rural highway in Oklahoma.
Mystery surrounds the final moments of Noah Presgrove, 19, who told friends he was leaving the party to go for a walk. His body was found about a mile away on the side of US 81 in Jefferson County, Oklahoma on Labor Day, 2023.
Oklahoma Highway Patrol described Presgrove’s death as “suspicious” in mid-September but now, seven months later, with the investigation into his death seemingly gone quiet, his family are speaking out and revealing the harrowing nature of his injuries.
Presgrove, described as goofy, fearless and hilarious by family, had recently graduated from Comanche High School and was enjoying a summer off before he planned to join the military.
He’d been at a four-day 22nd birthday party when, friends say, he decided to go for a walk but couldn’t find one of his shoes so he took another instead.
What happened after remains a mystery.
Presgrove’s family say they have not been allowed to see the Medical Examiner’s report outlining his cause of death.
When he was found, he was naked except for a pair of mismatched shoes.
His aunt Robyn Smith told NewsNation: “There was a wound to the back of his head, different skull fractures. He had ribs broken, and it was all on the left side,” earlier this week.
His teeth were found scattered on the ground, she said, and he had rashes from road gravel on his shoulder and hip.
Ms Smith said her nephew’s body was severely bruised and swollen when the family saw it at the funeral home, His fingertips appeared to be “shredded”.
“They said that they didn’t think that this was from a vehicle,” Ms Smith told the outlet.
“There was no indication of any kind of injuries to the lower half of his body.”
Cousins who spoke to KFOR described Noah as “fearless”, “goofy”, and “hilarious”.
“At the end of the day, what we know is that he lost his life,” cousin Lindsay Fowler told KFOR.
“He was found on the side of the highway. And it appears that he was dumped there and someone knows what happened. And we want to know what happened.”
Relatives feel that instead of answers, the OHP has left them in the dark.
Many of Noah’s cousins, aunts and grandparents have been active on a Facebook page called “Justice for Noah Presgrave”, seeking to raise awareness of his case and pressure authorities for answers.
A spokesperson for the OHP would only tell The Independent that “the investigation is still ongoing”, while the OSBI deferred to the OHP.
