Hannah Kobayashi’s family releases new statement saying she doesn't want to return home after being found safe
The sister of Hannah Kobayashi, the 30-year-old aspiring photographer from Hawaii whose family said was found safe this week in Mexico after being reported missing a month ago, posted a lengthy statement to social media saying she doesn’t want to return home.
In a Facebook post Thursday, Hannah's sister, Sydni Kobayashi, said she and her mother had spoken with Hannah by phone, and that she told them that “at this time, she does not wish to return to us.”
“As you can imagine, we are all extremely relieved and glad that my sister is alive and seemingly okay, but we also have mixed and overwhelming feelings of exhaustion, devastation, and betrayal,” Sydni Kobayashi wrote. “We are kindly asking the public to respect our privacy and offer us grace for a moment as we are still grieving. There is still so much unknown, and so much that still needs to be navigated.”
Hannah Kobayashi’s family announced Wednesday that she had been safely located.
"We are incredibly relieved and grateful that Hannah has been found safe," Kobayashi's family said in a statement posted by their attorney on X. "This past month has been an unimaginable ordeal for our family, and we kindly ask for privacy as we take the time to heal and process everything we have been through. We want to express our heartfelt thanks to everyone who supported us during this difficult time. Your kindness and concern have meant the world to us."
“We are happy to learn that Hannah has been found safe," the Los Angeles Police Department said in a statement. "Now that we have this new information, this has become a private matter and we will wrap up our investigation.”
On Dec. 12, Sydni Kobayashi posted on the family's GoFundMe page that they would no longer accept donations to help find Kobayashi or fund her father Ryan's funeral, who died by suicide on Nov. 24. The GoFundMe was initially created on Nov. 15 to help cover the expenses the family claimed were growing with "the scope and intensity of the search."
"We are incredibly relieved and grateful that Hannah has been found safe. This past month has been an unimaginable ordeal for our family. We want to express our heartfelt thanks to everyone who supported us during this difficult time," Sydni wrote. "We are turning donations off, and any donor who would like a refund can submit a claim by December 18th, and it will be honored."
How we got here
In early November, Kobayashi was traveling from her home on Maui to New York to visit an aunt and pursue a photography opportunity, according to various media interviews with her family. She allegedly missed two connecting flights out of Los Angeles on Nov. 8 and Nov. 11.
At a news conference on Dec. 2, Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell said that the LAPD “reviewed video surveillance from U.S. Customs and Border Protection, which clearly shows Kobayashi crossing the United States border on foot into Mexico. She was alone with her luggage and appeared unharmed.”
The LAPD also said Kobayashi walked alone to Mexico through the tunnel at the San Ysidro Port of Entry, according to the reviewed footage. McDonnell added that Kobayashi’s missing persons case would remain active until her safety is confirmed, but the LAPD would not be investigating in Mexico.
On Dec. 3, Hannah's sister Sydni gave an interview to NBC News in which she said the family was "shocked" and "frustrated" by the LAPD's conclusion that Hannah had voluntarily traveled to Mexico by herself.
“She’s gone to different places, but she’s always checked in,” Sydni Kobayashi said. “She always lets us know what’s going on.”
The next day, the family's attorney, Sara Azari, shared a statement on X, saying "the search is far from over" and "learning just two days ago that Hannah may be in Mexico has only heightened our fears."
"It has been 22 agonizing days since we last heard from her, and not knowing where she is or if she’s okay is heartbreaking," the statement continued. "Like everyone else, we are learning updates through the media, as LAPD has not been fully forthcoming in sharing critical developments directly with us.”
A Los Angeles magazine article published on Dec. 4 citing sources reported that Hannah's mom may have discovered evidence that Kobayashi may have been involved in a green card marriage for money and the "secret new husband" may have also been on the flight to Los Angeles.
Azari shared another statement on X from the family in response to the article saying, "We want to stress that the family has not publicly announced any information regarding an alleged marriage because we did not have the facts or the necessary documents to verify the legitimacy of this information."
McDonnell said at a police commission meeting on Nov. 26 that Kobayashi “missed her connecting flight from LAX to New York, which the investigation determined was intentional.” The LAPD did not immediately respond to Yahoo News’ request for comment.
Hannah’s sister Sydni denied the theory “that Hannah intentionally missed her flight.”
Why did Hannah Kobayashi's family report her as missing?
It is not clear why Kobayashi first missed her connecting flight from Maui to New York City at LAX on Nov. 8.
The family said they had seen security footage of Kobayashi leaving the airport on Nov. 8 and then again at the Grove shopping center on Nov. 9 and Nov. 10, which is about 12 miles north of the airport. On Nov. 11, Kobayashi posted on her public Instagram account about attending a Nike event at the Grove and was even spotted on a stranger’s YouTube video about the event that was filmed on Nov. 10.
Kobayashi then returned to LAX on Nov. 11 but did not board a flight. That was the last time anyone received messages from Kobayashi’s cellphone number.
On Nov. 15, the LAPD missing persons unit made a poster describing Kobayashi and stating that she was last seen at LAX on Nov. 11. The family also filed a report with the FBI.
Read more from Yahoo News: Hannah Kobayashi is still missing: Here’s a timeline of everything that’s happened so far
Why was Kobayashi going to New York?
In an interview with NewsNation on Nov. 23, Kobayashi's aunt Larie Pidgeon said that her niece had sent her mom a detailed itinerary for her stay in New York, including places where she wanted to eat, museums she wanted to visit and a photography assignment “that had been on her bucket list forever” as a career opportunity. Pidgeon added that Kobayashi allegedly paid “a couple thousand dollars” for a hotel reservation in New York as well.
Hannah’s sister Sydni told CNN that Kobayashi and her then boyfriend had booked the flights to New York together and also made plans to visit an aunt in upstate New York. They broke up after booking the flights and agreed to go ahead with the trip separately.
The ex-boyfriend, who has not been publicly named, successfully boarded the Nov. 8 connecting flight to New York and has been “extremely responsive and cooperative with the investigation,” according to the Kobayashi family.
Kobayashi’s family tried to piece together what happened in L.A.
Pidgeon told USA Today that on Nov. 11, the family “started getting texts” from Kobayashi’s number that said she “didn’t feel safe, that someone was trying to steal her funds, that someone was trying to take her identity.” Pidgeon added that the messages sent to family and friends included “weird things, calling us babe, things that weren’t quite the normal way that she speaks.”
"She texted [a friend] that she was scared and that she couldn’t come back home or something," Sydni Kobayashi told HawaiiNewsNow. "It was just really weird texts. … It doesn’t sound like her — like there’s just something off about it. So I wasn’t too sure. I don’t know if it’s her or if someone else was texting.”
One of her last texts allegedly said, “I just finished a very intense spiritual awakening. I'm heading back to the airport to get to NYC. I might need some help getting there."
In addition to texts, the family also didn’t recognize the names of two people Kobayashi sent money to over Venmo on Nov. 10 — transactions that Yahoo News was able to verify since Kobayashi’s Venmo account is public.
The family also said there was security camera footage showing Kobayashi and an unknown person at the Crypto.com Arena in downtown Los Angeles, allegedly on Nov. 11.
"It has been confirmed that she did leave the airport on 11/11 in the evening and that she boarded the Metro," Pidgeon told CBS News. "She was not alone. She was with an unidentified person. That causes us extreme alarm because that correlates with the timeline of her going missing. So, our focus now is on the Pico Metro station."
Yahoo News had reached out to several of the family members.
“If you see Hannah, please call 911 immediately,” read a statement from the family shared on Facebook. “Please obtain a photograph if possible. Your prompt action is crucial. If you’re able to safely keep eyes on her until law enforcement arrives, please do so.”
What happened to her dad, Ryan?
After spending two weeks helping search for his daughter, Ryan Kobayashi was found dead on Nov. 24, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. The county coroner's office confirmed on Nov. 25 that he died by suicide.
The Kobayashi family said in a statement that Ryan Kobayashi “tragically took his own life” after “tirelessly searching throughout Los Angeles for 13 days.”
"He just died of a broken heart," Pidgeon told USA Today on Nov. 26. "Being on the streets and seeing what the possibilities of where his daughter could be. No sleep. The speculating rumors that are going around. It just took a toll on him."
