Kyra Hall
A diver found GoPro footage showing the final moments of a man’s life before his death.
Self-proclaimed treasure hunter Rich Aloha is a YouTuber who films his adventures and dives for his 7,000-plus subscribers.
On one of his adventures, he came across a GoPro that once belonged to Richard Ragland, who died in 2017.
For two years, Ragland’s parents, Robin and Gary McCrear, wondered what had happened to their son in his final moments.
When Aloha discovered the GoPro, with the memory card still intact inside, he could finally provide Ragland’s parents with answers.
Ragland tragically drowned at a waterfall in Foster Falls, Tennessee, reports WSB-TV. He died on June 4, not long before his 23rd birthday.
Around the time of Ragland’s death, Robin hoped to gain answers with an envelope she received from Foster Falls State Park’s rangers.
She was expecting to receive a thumb drive of Ragland’s footage, however, the envelope was empty, prompting his parents to believe someone had stolen the video.
Yet in 2019, Robin received an unexpected call from Aloha.
The YouTuber stumbled across a camera while treasure-hunting in the park’s waters. He’d been told by park rangers what had happened at the site and that if he discovered anything belonging to Ragland to return it.
Aloha recounted to WSB-TV: “I was going through the footage and I said: ‘Oh my God, this is the guy.’”
After hours of Google research, the treasure hunter managed to track down a phone number, which is when Robin received the phone call.
“For him to go through his efforts to do his research, make numerous phone calls, he didn’t give up until he got in touch with us and that means the world to us,” Ragland’s mother told WSB-TV.
Aloha added: “I strongly believe that God led me to this GoPro because the only thing I saw was the end tip of the thumbscrew and everything else was just covered in muck.
“I’m glad I found it, personally, because I try to do the right thing and get the item back to the rightful owner.”
Although Ragland’s parents didn’t initially watch the entirety of the footage, it filled them with relief to see that their son’s final moments were full of laughter and happiness as he enjoyed himself with friends and splashed in the water.
His mother said: “What we’ve seen so far is Rich being Rich, living life to the fullest,” adding: “He was an amazing young man. We miss him dearly with all of our hearts.”
Find out more about the GoPro finding here…
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