Not Home for the Holidays: Reyna Dunlap

In this episode of Hunting 4 Answers: When 23-year-old influencer Reyna Dunlap disappeared just before Christmas, her silence online raised red flags. Nearly two weeks later, her body was found in an abandoned East Cleveland home—a place known locally as a dumping ground. As her family pleads for answers, police remain tight-lipped, and the cause of death remains a mystery. Anyone with information about this case can anonymously contact the East Cleveland Police Department at 216-621-1234. 

This is the story of Reyna Dunlap. 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hunting for Answers is a production of the Black Effect
Podcast Network and iHeartRadio. Welcome to Hunting for Answers, a
true crime podcast. I'm your host Hunter, and today we're
discussing a case from East Cleveland, Ohio, a city with
decades of violence and systemic neglect. But this case, this

(00:23):
one felt different because when a twenty three year old
social media influencer vanished in December twenty twenty three, it
didn't just shake her community. It ignited a firestorm of outrage, heartbreak,
and suspicion. She was a mother, a daughter, and a friend,

(00:45):
but her infectious presence would be silenced under circumstances that
remain deeply disturbing and deeply unresolved. This is the story
of Raina Dunlap. It was the holiday season when Raina disappeared.
According to her family, she was headed to East Cleveland

(01:08):
for a trip that was December twenty third, and then nothing.
Her social media posts stopped, her phone went silent, Christmas
came and went, and her loved ones began to worry
because this wasn't like Raina. She had a daughter, she

(01:32):
had a platform with thousands of followers, She had ambition
and she'd just taken a bold step by trying out
for a reality TV show called Battie's Midwest. But despite
the mysterious circumstances surrounding her disappearance, the red flags weren't
registering as they should have. On January fifth, twenty twenty four,

(01:58):
thirteen days after Randa was last seen, police made a
grim discovery in an abandoned home on Savannah Avenue in
East Cleveland. They found human remains hidden inside. The house
was like many others in the area, boarded up, gutted,
and long forgotten, but someone had used it to conceal

(02:22):
a body. It didn't take long to confirm what family
already feared. The remains belonged to Raina Dunlap. Her body
was hidden in a structure known to locals as a
dumping ground, one of the many neglected buildings where danger lurks.

(02:42):
In this house, it wasn't far from where her phone
last pained. So who brought Raina to that house? What
happened within the walls? And how is it that a
young woman with a digital following could vanish for nearly
two weeks with out a trace and without any urgency.

(03:04):
Making things even more uneasy. It was reported that at
least two people saw Raina in good health prior to
her disappearance, and while police have acknowledged the case, little
information has been shared. No suspect has been publicly named.
In fact, they initially ruled Raina's death as an overdose,

(03:26):
but the official cause of death has yet to be
revealed by the Cuyahaga County Medical Examiner's office. Police say
once they have that information, they'll know how to further
proceed in her case. Rayna's family, especially her mother, Britney
Dunlap and her sister Cairo Dunlap, have been relentless. Britney

(03:49):
remembers Raina as joyful, creative, and fiercely protective of her
loved ones. Her online persona was vibrant, bold, sometimes controversial,
but undeniably full of life, and now that energy was gone.
In interviews, her mother said the pain is unbearable, but

(04:13):
the silence surrounding her daughter's death is worse. They want answers,
they want justice, and they want people to remember Raina
for who she was, not how she died. The story
of Rayna Dunlap is not just about one woman. It
highlights a pattern too often when people go missing in

(04:37):
this same area, their cases are often met with delay, disbelief,
or silence. My thoughts and prayers are with Rayna's family
and friends. Her family urges anyone who may have seen, spoken,
or know who was last with Raina to please come forward.

(04:57):
Anyone with information can anonymous We contact the East Cleveland Police.
Their information can be found in the description box below.
As we close out this episode, don't forget to hit
the follow button to stay updated on this case and
others like it. Be sure to subscribe to Hunting for
Answers on YouTube and follow us on Instagram and TikTok

(05:20):
from our true crime updates. And if you enjoyed this episode,
leave us a five star rating. Thank you so much
for joining us on another episode until next time. Hunting
for Answers is a production of the Black Effect Podcast Network.

(05:43):
For more podcasts from the Black Effect Podcast Network, visit
the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to
your favorite shows.