The family of Hannah Kobayashi is offering a refund to anyone who contributed to a fundraiser that raised nearly $50,000 to assist in the search for the missing photographer after she was found safe in Mexico.
The family has set a deadline for refund requests — December 18th — with the condition that anyone who wishes to claim their donation must submit a request by then.
“We are turning donations off, and any donor who would like a refund can submit a claim by December 18th, and it will be honoured,” said Sydni Kobayashi, Hannah’s sister, in a Thursday update on the fundraiser. The campaign had garnered over $47,000 to aid in the search for the 30-year-old Hawaii native.
In addition, a separate GoFundMe was established to cover the funeral expenses for her father, Ryan Kobayashi, who tragically passed away from an apparent suicide just six days after his daughter’s disappearance.
The Kobayashi family expressed gratitude in the update: “We are incredibly relieved and grateful that Hannah has been found safe.
This past month has been an unimaginable ordeal for our family. 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.”
Hannah was reported missing on November 11 after missing a connecting flight to New York City. In the days leading up to her disappearance, she had sent troubling text messages to family and friends, mentioning a “spiritual awakening” and claiming she had been “tricked.” Her relatives feared she had been kidnapped or trafficked, especially after she was last seen with an unknown man.
It was later discovered that Hannah had voluntarily travelled to Mexico, where the FBI began investigating whether she was involved in a green card marriage scheme.
Reports revealed that she had secretly married an Argentine national, Alan Cacace, and had planned to travel to New York with him and her ex, Amun Muniz-Miranda, as part of a plan to create fraudulent proof of their marriages for immigration purposes.
Instead of proceeding with the trip, Hannah purchased a bus ticket to Los Angeles on November 12, heading toward the Mexican border. The next day, she crossed into Tijuana via the San Ysidro point of entry tunnel.
After more than a month of uncertainty, her family announced on Wednesday that she had been found safe. They have asked for privacy as they process the past month’s events. “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,” the family said in a statement.
