Hannah Kobayashi: Missing woman found safe and alive after almost a month

Hannah Kobayashi, the woman who had been missing for nearly a month, has been located safe and sound, according to her family.

The 30-year-old individual from Hawaii appeared to disappear after landing in Los Angeles from Maui on November 8 and failing to catch a connecting flight to New York shortly afterward.

Her vanishing triggered a large-scale and highly publicized search effort. During this time, Kobayashi's father went to Los Angeles, where it was reported that he took his own life.

Authorities stated that Kobayashi had "chosen" to disappear on her own and was observed crossing into Mexico.

Although her family didn't disclose her exact location, they announced through a statement from their attorney on December 11 that she was "located safely."

"We're so thankful and relieved that Hannah has been located unharmed," the statement expressed.

"The last month has been an incredibly difficult experience for our family, and we would appreciate some privacy as we work through our emotions and begin to heal."

The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) expressed their relief, stating, “We’re glad to hear that Hannah is safe. With this new development, the situation is now considered private, and we will be concluding our investigation.”

Kobayashi managed to make her flight from Hawaii to California, but she missed her connection to New York, where she was supposed to capture photos of a DJ performance.

She informed her relatives that she had missed her flight and was spending the night at the Los Angeles airport. The next day, she updated them that she planned to explore the sights in LA.

Nevertheless, her relatives and friends started getting “odd and mysterious, quite concerning” texts from her phone that raised alarm about her safety, her aunt Larie Pidgeon shared.

“I lost my identity to hackers, they took all my money, and I've been experiencing a mental nightmare since Friday,” the individual wrote in a message to a friend, as shown in screenshots shared by her sister with CNN.

Another person mentioned, “I was basically deceived into losing all my money,” and added, “by someone I believed I cared for.”

Pictures revealed her strolling through Los Angeles just days after she had her flight mishap, and her social media activity seemed to confirm that she was nearby.

Kobayashi was declared missing on November 11, prompting a search effort. Authorities later discovered that she had been seen entering Mexico.

Authorities announced that she picked up her luggage from Los Angeles International Airport on November 11 and classified her disappearance as "voluntary." Officials reported that she paid in cash for a ticket to the US-Mexico border, crossing on foot at the San Ysidro checkpoint in San Diego on November 12.

"At a press conference, LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell stated, 'She was by herself with her bags and seemed to be okay at that point.' He added that investigators had observed that Kobayashi had shown an interest in disconnecting from modern technology before leaving Maui."

In late November, her father, Ryan, came from Hawaii to Los Angeles to look for his daughter. Tragically, he was later discovered dead, and authorities determined it was a suicide.

Kobayashi's family created a GoFundMe page to help fund the search efforts, which has collected over $47,000. They recently provided an update stating that any donor interested in a refund can request one by December 18th, and those requests will be fulfilled.

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