Woman sends cryptic message, misses flight from LAX then disappears, family says

A Hawaii woman disappeared after sending a cryptic message to her family and then missing a connecting flight to New York at Los Angeles International Airport, according to her family and police.

Hannah Kobayashi, 31, was last seen at LAX on Nov. 8 and last contacted her family by phone on Nov. 9, according to a Los Angeles Police Department news release. She is described as being 5 feet 10 and weighing 140 pounds with brown hair and hazel eyes. She has a “knife” tattoo on her forearm and freckles on her face.

An LAPD spokesperson confirmed that a missing person report was filed on Friday but no other information or updates were available. Anyone with more information has been asked to contact the LAPD at (877) 527-3247.

Kobayashi boarded a flight in Maui on Nov. 8 headed to New York City with a stop at LAX but never made it to New York, her family told USA Today.

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She landed at LAX but missed her next flight, appearing instead to visit the Grove shopping center, where she went to a Nike event on Nov. 10, her family told USA Today. On Nov. 11, Kobayashi apparently went back to LAX but didn’t board a flight. Later that day, she sent her family what it called “strange” text messages.

“Hannah’s last message to us was alarming — she mentioned feeling scared, and that someone might be trying to steal her money and identity,” her family said. “She hasn’t been heard from since, and we are gravely concerned for her safety.”

Kobayashi also texted a friend that someone might be trying to steal her identity and money, her father, Ryan, told KABC-TV. Her phone’s last location was at LAX but it is now either dead or turned off.

“She felt like she was in danger,” he said. “She felt like somebody was trying to get her identity or her phone.”

Kobayashi’s aunt, Larie Pidgeon, told KABC that her niece was planning to attend an event in New York.

“She’s very responsible. She was looking forward to this event so much,” she said. “She had a hotel room booked that was a couple of thousand dollars, the ticket for the event was a couple of hundred dollars.”