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Man who found Noah Presgrove talks finding Oklahoma teen’s body

  • Noah Presgrove, 19, was found on side of Oklahoma highway last year
  • Family says he was last seen alive at party over 2023 Labor Day weekend
  • Highway Patrol says it is not investigating Presgrove’s death as murder

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(NewsNation) — A man who was the first to find 19-year-old Noah Presgrove’s body on the side of a highway in Oklahoma told the Daily Mail he saw little blood at the scene.

Presgrove, family members say, was last seen alive at a party he attended with a group of friends last Labor Day weekend. His body was discovered along U.S. 81 near Terral, Oklahoma, on Sept. 4, 2023.

Gulfmark Energy field supervisor Tyler Hardy had been driving south to an early morning shift that day when he saw something in the headlights of his pickup truck. 

“I was the one who found the body, so yes, I can say 100% that nobody messed with Noah. I was the first person there,” Hardy said in an interview with the Daily Mail published Sunday. “I know who and what I saw.” 

Hardy pulled over and saw Presgrove’s body lying in a fetal position, totally naked except for a pair of mismatched shoes. About 25 feet away from Presgrove were a pair of white shorts.

A semi-truck driver Hardy had been behind when he saw the body turned around and returned to the side of the highway. Both of them called 911. A little while later, Presgrove’s best friend, Jack Newton, arrived.

“Jack was the only person who walked up to Noah, and he told me who it was until the Terral fire and Jefferson County Sheriffs showed up,” Hardy recalled. Newton confirmed that there was minimal blood at the scene, with a little coming out of Presgrove’s ears and on the top of his head.

Noah Presgrove Investigation

The Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation initially described Presgrove’s death as “suspicious,” though the state’s Highway Patrol later said it is not investigating Presgrove’s death as a murder.

A medical examiner’s report obtained by NewsNation local affiliate KFOR in May states that Presgrove died from “multiple blunt force injuries” and labels his manner of death as “undetermined.” The report notes that there were various injuries and abrasions seen on Presgrove. This lines up with what Presgrove’s family previously said to NewsNation’s Ashleigh Banfield about the teen having a caved-in skull, road rash on his hip, a gravel rash on his shoulder, multiple bruises and scattered teeth.

However, the autopsy report says there were no vehicle parts or debris observed in the area, KFOR wrote, casting doubt on theories that there had been a hit-and-run. What was found by Presgrove’s body, the report said, were the shorts as well as three pieces of a white metal chain, “part of a tooth” and a clump of hair, the report said.

  • Noah Presgrove, a 19-year-old found dead in Oklahoma, is seen here in an undated photo.

“At this time, what transpired on how the body was found on the road having multiple blunt force injuries is unknown,” the report said.

When the medical examiner performed the autopsy, Presgrove had a blood alcohol level of 0.14.

Family members of Presgrove’s have been searching for answers. His older sister, Madison Rawlings, said that the autopsy just left her with even more questions.

“He wasn’t hit by a vehicle, so I mean, I guess it puts you at ease,” Rawlings said to KFOR. “But then I would love to know, OK, well, what caused these injuries?”

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In her heart, Rawlings said, she thinks that “somebody knows exactly what happened” to Presgrove.

“I just hope that they can find it in their hearts to just do the right thing,” she said in a May interview on “NewsNation Prime.” “And if you’re doing the right thing, then that’s all that we can ask of you.”

NewsNation local affiliate KFOR contributed to this report.

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