Missing woman Hannah Kobayashi has been found safe a couple weeks after her father took his own life while frantically looking for her.
The 30-year-old Hawaii woman reached out to her family on Wednesday and informed them that she is fine.
‘We are incredibly relieved and grateful that Hannah has been found safe,’ her mother Brandi Yi and sister Sydni Kobayashi said in a statement shared by their attorney.
‘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.’
The statement did not include details on Hannah’s current location and what she was doing for the past month amid a nationwide search for her.
Shortly after her family’s announcement on Wednesday afternoon, the Los Angeles Police Department stated: ‘We are happy to learn that Hannah has been found safe.
‘Now that we have this new information, this has become a private matter and we will wrap up our investigation.’
Earlier this month, cops had said that Hannah took a train from Union Station in Downtown Los Angeles to the southern border of the US and was in Mexico.
Los Angeles police on December 2 classified Hannah as a voluntary missing person after obtaining CCTV footage that showed her crossing the border.
Hannah, a photographer, had flown from Maui to Los Angeles on November 8 but did not get on her connecting flight to New York City.
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On November 11, her family reported her missing after receiving ‘strange and cryptic, just alarming’ text messages from her, said her aunt Larie Pidgeon.
‘Once the family started pressing, she went dark,’ said Pidgeon.
Surveillance footage from the next day showed her walking alone in a tunnel at the San Ysidro crossing.
Cops questioned a man that Hannah was seen with on a local train and he was cooperative.
Hannah’s father, Ryan Kobayashi, 58, flew to the Southern California city to look for her and was found dead at a car park near Los Angeles International Airport on November 24. The next day, authorities revealed that he had intentionally killed himself.
‘After tirelessly searching throughout Los Angeles for 13 days, Hannah’s father, Ryan Kobayashi, tragically took his own life,’ stated the family at the time.
Some speculated that Hannah got wrapped up in a marriage scam, based on weird messages she had been sending her loved ones and friends before her disappearance.
‘I got tricked pretty much into giving away all my funds for someone I thought I loved,’ read one of the messages.
Earlier this month, Los Angeles police Chief Jim McDonnell said there was no evidence that Hannah was a victim of human trafficking or another crime.
‘We have basically done everything we can do at this point. She has left the country and in another nation now,’ he said and urged a ‘simple message’ from her.
‘My ask would be to anybody considering doing this, think about the people you’re leaving behind, your loved ones who are going to be worried sick about you.’
Meanwhile, her family had continued to say they did not know of her whereabouts and if she was safe.
Sydni had disputed a statement from cops that her sister intentionally missed her connecting flight to New York.
Over the past weeks, numerous bizarre details emerged in the case, including alleged Venmo payments that the missing woman made for what were believed to be tarot card readings.
Family members said Hannah texted she ‘had a spiritual awakening and was heading back to the airport’ in Los Angeles at one point.
Hannah took the same flight from Hawaii to California as her ex-boyfriend, who continued on the connecting flight and cooperated with investigators.
Her family and the police department did not have plans on Wednesday to further address her case.
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