Obamas' Personal Chef Drowns on Martha's Vineyard

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Facts

  • The body of Tafari Campbell, former Pres. Barack Obama’s personal chef was discovered at the Edgartown Great Pond on Martha’s Vineyard on Monday, Massachusetts State Police confirmed.1
  • Police said they received a call about Campbell's disappearance at just before 8 p.m. local time Sunday, adding that the call came from an individual that had been paddle boarding with Campbell.2
  • According to the police statement, the unnamed individual said Campbell had gone into the water, appeared to briefly struggle to stay on the surface, then "submerged and did not resurface."2
  • Police paused their search Sunday but found Campbell's body just before 10 a.m. local time the following day. Divers retrieved the body approximately 100 feet (30 meters) from shore at a depth of about 8 feet (2.4 meters).3
  • Police also said that the Obamas were not at their Martha's Vineyard residence when the incident occurred.4
  • The Obamas released a statement calling Campbell “a beloved part of our family” who had an “ability to bring people together.”5

Sources: 1Guardian, 2MSPNews (a), 3MSPNews (b), 4MSPNews (c), and 5CNN.

Narratives

  • Pro-establishment narrative, as provided by CNN. This tragedy appears to be a paddle-boarding excursion gone horribly wrong. Local police are investigating the death, but at this stage, it appears it was an accident.
  • Establishment-critical narrative, as provided by Sportskeeda. The details surrounding this death are suspicious. Campbell was a seasoned swimmer, and there’s no explanation for why he would go into the lake at such a late hour. More mysteriously, he was not the first White House chef to drown. All angles must be investigated in detail.