Body found in area of search for Jimmy Gracey, University of Alabama student missing in Barcelona
A 20-year-old University of Alabama student from the Chicago area, James "Jimmy" Gracey, has disappeared during a spring break trip to visit friends studying abroad in Barcelona, Spain, his family said.
Body recovered near Barcelona beach in search for Jimmy Gracey
Officers from Mossos d'Esquadra, the regional police force in Barcelona, have set up a perimeter around a section of beach and say they've discovered a body in the ongoing search for missing University of Alabama student Jimmy Gracey.
It has not yet been identified.
Early Thursday evening local time, a worker at Port Olimpic, adjacent to the beach outside the club where Gracey was last seen, ran out and waved down police officers, pointing in the direction he came from.
Officers put up crime scene tape, brought in a marked vehicle and cordoned off the scene.
"Mossos officers have located the lifeless body of a person in the water in the Somorrostro area," the department posted on X. "Procedures are underway to identify the body."
Divers were seen entering the water with a stretcher at around 7:05 p.m. local time and returned to the dock with a body bag 10 minutes later. It appeared to be full.
Police have set up a blue screen shielding the body from view as investigators remain on scene.
The 20-year-old was last seen by friends around 3 a.m. Tuesday at Shoko, which advertises itself as one of the top 10 clubs in the world and sits on the edge of the Mediterranean Sea.
Gracey and a group of classmates had traveled to Spain to visit friends studying abroad in Barcelona on spring break.
In a statement, the Gracey family did not address the latest development but expressed thanks for widespread, international support they've been offered this week.
"We are so grateful for the kindness and concern that has been shown for our family during this incredibly difficult time," the family said. "We have made the decision to pause media interviews at this time to focus on being together and caring for one another. Thank you for respecting our privacy and holding our family in your thoughts and prayers. We will share updates if and when we’re able."
Fox News' Patrick McGovern and Garrett Tenney contributed to this report.
Recovery of Jimmy Gracey's phone key for search, expert says: 'We have a break'
When Mossos d'Esquadra police in Barcelona recovered the phone of missing University of Alabama student Jimmy Gracey this week, it opened the door for valuable investigatory leads, according to Paul Mauro, a retired NYPD inspector and Fox News contributor.
"Google, which is generally the way you go with this, the Google Maps app, they have dumped all of their geolocation stuff onto the phone," he told Fox News' Harris Faulkner Thursday.
That makes the recovery of the physical phone itself the best way to track Gracey's movements from the morning he went missing, he said.
"In this instance, we have a break," he said. "We've got the phone."
A law enforcement source told Fox News Digital Wednesday that work was already underway scouring through Gracey's recent location data.
Mossos d'Esquadra told Fox News Digital Thursday that authorities were looking at several lines of investigation, including the potential that Gracey may have drowned.
To that end, police have deployed helicopters, boats, dive teams and motorcycle units to search the waterfront.
Gracey was least seen at the waterfront nightclub Shoko around 3 a.m. Tuesday. It is next to the city's Port Olimpic, also known as Olympic Harbor, a major marina.
Drowning among theories as search for missing Jimmy Gracey expands in Barcelona
The search for missing University of Alabama student Jimmy Gracey is ramping up in Barcelona, where authorities say they’ve deployed aerial, maritime and motorcycle units while looking down multiple investigative paths — including the possibility that he may have drowned, according to Mossos d’Esquadra, Barcelona's police force.
They are leading the investigation out of the city’s upscale Eixample district.
Officials have declined to confirm or deny key details that have surfaced in local reporting from some of Spain’s leading newspapers, including whether Gracey’s phone or wallet has been recovered or whether any arrests have been made.
The family told Fox News Digital previously that his phone had been recovered during the arrest of a third-party individual, but it’s not immediately clear that his possession of Gracey’s phone is connected to the disappearance.
Separately, La Vanguardia reported that Gracey’s wallet had been recovered from the water.
The Illinois native was last seen around 3 a.m. at Shoko, a waterfront nightclub next to the city’s Port Olimpica.
Police acknowledged that some details circulating publicly may ultimately prove accurate, but said they are withholding confirmation until they have a clearer understanding of what happened.
Authorities say they are actively pursuing several lines of investigation. One of those includes the possibility that Gracey entered the water and drowned, which police confirmed is among the working hypotheses.
On Wednesday, Mossos d’Esquadra activated helicopter and subaquatic units. Today, they rolled out their motorcycle unit and dive teams.
Conditions in the water are making the search especially difficult. Divers involved in the operation told Fox News Digital Thursday they were working under extremely poor visibility, saying they can see only about 40 centimeters — roughly 16 inches — in front of them.
Solly Boussidan contributed to this report.
Barcelona police divers join search for Jimmy Gracey, missing Alabama student
The marine unit of Mossos d'Esquadra, Barcelona's police force, deployed along the Mediterranean coast Thursday amid the ongoing search for missing University of Alabama student Jimmy Gracey.
The 20-year-old, originally from Illinois, was last seen around 3 a.m. Tuesday at Shoko, a waterfront nightclub near the city's Port Olimpic.
A family spokesperson told Fox News Digital that authorities recovered his phone from the arrest of a third-party individual. Authorities have released little information regarding that person, and it's not immediately clear that his possession of the phone is connected to Gracey's disappearance.
After Gracey failed to return to the Airbnb he'd rented with friends on a spring break trip, they reported him missing around 1 a.m. local time Wednesday, authorities said.
"Today the maritime and underwater unit has been activated to search," police said in a statement.
While Gracey's whereabouts remain unknown, police did recover his wallet from the water, according to La Vanguardia, a leading newspaper in Barcelona.
Fox News' Garrett Tenney contributed to this report.
Maritime, drone searches underway as investigation into Jimmy Gracey's disappearance continues
Aquatic and drone searches are underway in Barcelona on Thursday for missing University of Alabama student Jimmy Gracey, according to media reports.
Sources from local police told the El Periódico newspaper on Thursday that a search was launched at sea Thursday morning with the deployment of aquatic and underwater units. A drone unit also has been deployed, the sources added.
Police also found Gracey's wallet floating in the water near Somorrostro beach, according to WLS.
James "Jimmy" Gracey, of Elmhurst, Illinois, was last seen around 3 a.m. after visiting the waterfront Shoko restaurant and nightclub on March 17, his mother, Therese Gracey, wrote in a Facebook post.
Local police carried out a search in the waters near that area on Wednesday but had "negative results," a source with knowledge of the investigation told CNN.
Alabama fraternity president tells Jimmy Gracey to 'keep fighting': 'We're not going to give up'
Cavin McLay, the president of the University of Alabama's Theta Chi fraternity, told "Fox & Friends" on Thursday that he has a message for missing student James "Jimmy" Gracey.
"I tell him to keep fighting, that we're not going to give up. We're going to keep looking for him, and we're waiting for him to come to us safe," McLay said.
"Jimmy's a great guy, upstanding character," McLay added. "He serves as a mentor in our chapter to a lot of the younger guys. He is currently our chaplain, so he guides a lot of our brothers on their journey in their faith. we're heartbroken, but we're keeping our heads held high and remaining hopeful."
McLay said he was not with Gracey the night he went missing but was told there was "nothing out of the ordinary, either internally or externally." He said local authorities in Barcelona have been helpful as the search continues.
"They're being very helpful. Local authorities are working with us diligently," he said. "They're sending out their search teams everywhere they can, and they're updating us as often as they possibly can."
McLay also said he's spoken with Gracey's family, who "just want to extend their thanks and their gratefulness for the community that we have and for everyone sharing the story and getting the awareness out there, and for everyone that's on the ground here in Barcelona looking for him."
University of Alabama student James Gracey disappears in Barcelona after visiting friends
A 20-year-old University of Alabama student from the Chicago area is missing from a spring break trip to visit friends studying abroad in Barcelona, Spain, according to his family.
James "Jimmy" Gracey, of Elmhurst, Illinois, was last seen around 3 a.m. after visiting the waterfront Shoko restaurant and nightclub on March 17, his mother, Therese Gracey, wrote in a Facebook post.
"He was with friends, but they got separated at the end of the night," she added. "They’re all out looking for him."
He is also believed to have been talking to a brown-haired American female around the time he was last seen.
Police have recovered his phone during the arrest of another individual, said Noreen Heron, a family spokesperson.
A law enforcement source in Barcelona declined to discuss the suspect arrested in possession of Gracey's phone but confirmed to Fox News Digital that investigators are now looking through the phone's recent location history in an attempt to locate Gracey.
He said investigators are looking into people he interacted with. They're going back and forth with witnesses. And they’re looking into cameras from the area where Gracey was the night he disappeared.
Cavin McLay, the president of Alabama's Theta Chi fraternity and a friend of Gracey's who also made the trip to Spain, told Fox News Digital Wednesday that the missing classmate is the chapter's chaplain and philanthropy chairman and is known for mentoring younger brothers and giving back to others.
"We’re keeping our heads up and remaining hopeful that we find him safe," he said.
Fox News' Ashley Papa and Solly Boussidan contributed to this report.
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