HONOLULU (KHON2) — There has been another twist in the disappearance of Hannah Kobayashi.
An attorney for her family said they have learned of a possible secret marriage before Hannah left Maui.
The Los Angeles Police Department said 30-year-old Hannah Kobayashi was recorded on surveillance video crossing into Mexico on her own accord on Tuesday, Nov. 12. She is still classified as a voluntary missing person.
“There’s nothing voluntary for the family. The family is very clear that this is very unusual behavior for Hannah,” Azari said. “We don’t know if she’s still there. We don’t know if she’s safe. And and my investigative team has to pick up from there.”
Azari was hired by Hannah’s immediate family. She said they had been made aware of a potential immigration scheme and secret marriage that Hannah may have been involved in before she left Maui for Los Angeles. Azari said the family has not confirmed any details about the alleged marriage, but that all relevant information was handed over to LAPD.
“And to this day, we don’t know whether they followed up on that information, what investigation they did and what results they received. So we are now investigating that independently,” Azari said.
LAPD chief Jim McDonnell added that information related to the alleged marriage does not appear to be relevant to Hannah’s disappearance.
“I don’t believe it had anything in, that turned up in the investigation, that showed that was tied into the disappearance,” McDonnell said.
Questions remain for the family. KHON2 asked Azari if the surveillance video of Hannah crossing into Mexico was released to her or the Kobayashi family.
“No,” Azari said. “The first thing I think law enforcement should do is to, number one, verify with the family that is actually the person, you know, for identification purposes and then also share that information that was never shared. To this day, we have not seen a video. Yes, she’s a 30-year-old woman. And if she is safe, she has a right to be wherever she wants to be. But at this point, the family is concerned that she is not safe because it’s just very out of character for her.”
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Click here for a link to Azari’s latest statement on the case.