Hannah Kobayashi, the missing Hawaii woman who sparked a massive search, has been found safe, the Los Angeles Police Department said Wednesday.
Kobayashi disappeared last month in Los Angeles, and her disappearance sparked a massive search and missing persons investigation. It was not immediately clear where he was found, but police previously said she crossed the border voluntarily into Mexico.
“We are happy to learn that Hannah has been found safe,” the LAPD said in a statement. “Now that we have this new information, this has become a private matter and we will close it our research.”
Det. Douglas Oldfield of the Los Angeles Police Department says that Hannah Kobayashi, the American woman who had not been seen in almost a month, was without a bandage and did not appear in distress in the November 12 surveillance photos at the border between the US and Mexico.
Kobayashi, a photographer from Maui, was heading to New York City on November 8 for a new job and to visit relatives when she missed a connecting flight at Los Angeles International Airport. She told her family she was sleeping at the airport that night and texted them the next day saying she was looking in Los Angeles.
Her family reported her missing to law enforcement on Nov. 11 after relatives received “weird and cryptic, just scary” text messages, according to her aunt Larie Pidgeon.
“As soon as the family started pressing, it went dark,” Pidgeon told The Associated Press late last month. After the texts on Nov. 11, her phone “just went dead,” Pidgeon said.
Search for Hannah's family members, friends and local volunteers in Los Angeles. Hannah's father, Ryan Kobayashi, was among those who flew in from Hawaii to help with the search. He was found dead Nov. 24 in a parking lot near L.A. International Airport, according to the county medical examiner.
Police said Hannah Kobayashi walked into Mexico at the San Ysidro border crossing about 200 kilometers southeast of Los Angeles on Nov. 12, the day after her family reported her missing. Authorities made the announcement after reviewing security video from US Customs and Border Protection.
Kobayashi disappeared voluntarily as she tried to “step away from today's contact,” LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell previously said.
