An American college student visiting friends for spring break has gone missing in Spain, his family said, adding police there have his phone.
James “Jimmy” Paul Gracey, a 20-year-old junior at the University of Alabama, was last seen by a friend around 3 a.m. local time Tuesday outside Barcelona’s Shoko club near Port Olímpic, relatives said in a statement.
Gracey had been out with friends that evening, but had become separated from the group and “that was the last time we’ve heard from him,” his fraternity brother, Cavin McLay, told CNN affiliate WBMA.
He was reported missing after he failed to return that morning to his short-term rental, his mother, Therese Gracey, said in a post on Facebook. He was last seen wearing a white shirt, dark pants and a chain with a gold rhinestone cross, his family said, adding he is about 6-foot-1 and 175 pounds.
Police have James Gracey’s phone, according to his mother, who said it was recovered after being stolen. The Catalan police force, Mossos d’Esquadra, is investigating, it said.
Officers from the force’s aquatic and underwater units have been conducting searches in the waters near the area where he was last seen, according to a police spokesperson. They have had “negative results,” a source with knowledge of the investigation told CNN.
In addition, some Mossos d’Esquadra officers are patrolling the city’s seaside neighborhood of Barceloneta on motorcycles, looking for Gracey.
Police are also reviewing security camera footage and trying to retrace his movements in those early hours, WBMA reported.
“Jimmy is a kind, responsible, and devoted son and brother. It is completely out of character for him not to check in with family and friends,” a statement from the family said. “We ask that you keep Jimmy in your thoughts as we continue to do everything we can to bring him home safely.”
The US State Department declined to provide details, citing “privacy concerns and other considerations.”
Employees at Shoko nightclub declined to comment about Gracey’s disappearance, but confirmed they have turned over CCTV footage to police. It’s unclear whether the security footage shows Gracey.
The employees also said friends of Gracey have come to the nightclub in the last few days, trying to get more information.
Gracey, of Chicago suburb Elmhurst, Illinois, was visiting friends who are studying abroad, and only arrived in Barcelona the morning before he went missing, according to his family, which is pleading for the public’s help in finding him.
While Gracey was on a personal trip, University of Alabama “staff are in touch with the family and those associated with them to offer support and assistance in any way possible,” the school told CNN.
Gracey, the eldest of five children, has a flight booked for Saturday to travel back to the United States, according to his uncle, David Gracey, who is a CNN senior producer in Washington, DC. The college student’s father traveled to Barcelona to aid in the search for his son, according to a family spokesperson.
He isn’t known to be out of touch with family, David Gracey said of his nephew, noting he is an avid hockey player and a responsible young man who helps his parents take care of his younger siblings.
At the University of Alabama, James Gracey is an honors student in the accounting program, his aunt Beth Marren O’Reilly told CNN.
He is also a member of Theta Chi fraternity, where he serves as the chapter’s chaplain and philanthropy chairman, said McLay, the chapter president.
“He’s the guy that goes out of his way to be there when someone needs it,” he said in a statement. “We’re keeping our heads up and remaining hopeful that we find him safe.”
Last year, another US college student went missing while on spring break.
Sudiksha Konanki, a 20-year-old University of Pittsburgh student, vanished at the beach of the Riu República Hotel in Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic early on March 6, 2025. Her disappearance prompted a frantic search by air, sea and land, involving authorities from the United States, the Dominican Republic and India, where Konanki’s family is originally from. She remains missing.
The US State Department has recommendations for how to stay safe traveling abroad and what to do if a loved one goes missing. If a US citizen relative or friend is not responding to communications, officials recommend notifying the police, both in the location where they were last known to be or where you think they’re missing, and the State Department’s Overseas Citizens Services office in Washington, DC, or your nearest US Embassy or Consulate. From the US and Canada, the Overseas Citizens Services office can be contacted at 1-888-407-4747.
