Hannah Kobayashi spent hours with stranger before heading to Mexico: police

Jessica Schladebeck, New York Daily News on Dec 7, 2024

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Hannah Kobayashi, a Hawaii woman police believe “voluntarily” went missing while traveling to New York, met a man shortly after landing in Los Angeles and then spent the day with him before crossing into Mexico, according to authorities.

Kobayashi departed from her native Maui on Friday, Nov. 8., and was scheduled to catch a connecting flight from Los Angeles International Airport later that night. Instead she left the airport and connected with a stranger days later, spending nine hours exploring downtown L.A. with him as they made their way toward Union Station.

“We have this gentleman, we have them walking [on surveillance video],” Lt. Doug Oldfield told People, adding they spent days reviewing the footage to ensure “nothing bad happened.”

“We’re looking — hey, does this person seem like she’s in distress, what does she look like? We see a lot of smiling,” he continued.

Police said they managed to track the man down just days after Kobayashi was first reported missing on Nov. 13. He told authorities they met at LAX’s train stop around 9 p.m. on Nov. 11 and struck up a conversation. He said Kobayashi did not appear in distress and mentioned wanting to see the Redwoods as well as her travel plans to New York.

“We haven’t spoken to her,” Oldfield said, “but from what we gather is that she was looking to understand how to get to Union Station and that he was going to assist in getting her there.”

When they arrived at the station, the pair spent several more hours together and ate dinner before going to sleep in a waiting area. Kobayashi later gathered her belongings and walked off on her own.

Oldfield said police have been able corroborate the man’s version of events, primarily via surveillance video, which shows Kobayashi buying a bus ticket shortly after 6 a.m. on Nov. 12. She arrived at the Mexico border roughly four hours later and walked into Tijuana around noon.

Police emphasized the unidentified man committed no crime and that Kobayashi is not suspected to be the victim of foul play.

Earlier this week, law enforcement declared Kobayashi willfully crossed into Mexico and had been reclassified as a “voluntary missing person.” The decision sparked backlash from her loved ones, who believe something more nefarious occurred.