The Edgartown Police Department (EPD) has refused to reveal the identity of the second paddleboarder who was with Barack Obama’s long-term personal chef when he mysteriously drowned at the Obama’s Martha’s Vineyard estate.
As The People’s Voice reported, 45-year-old Tafari Campbell drowned after being reported “missing” from the Obama’s residence on Sunday night.
On Monday morning, Campbell’s body was recovered from a shallow pond at the Obamas’ estate where he had been paddleboarding in water a few feet deep.
Campbell was not on the water alone and was reportedly paddleboarding with another person, however the police are refusing to name the person he was with.
At 7.46 pm, a 911 call was made to report that he had fallen in and could not make it back to the surface. That call is noted in Edgartown Police Department’s logs, but the reason for the 911 call behind it is left mysteriously blank.
The origin of the call is also listed as Wilson’s Landing – a paddle board launch site. The site is two miles from the Obamas’ mansion on Turkeyland Cove.
However, Massachusetts State Police originally stated that the first 911 call came direct from the Obamas’ residence.
Edgartown police chief Bruce McNamee told the Daily Mail that the call log is generated by the Dukes County Sheriff’s Office.
McNamee said he could only speculate on the reason for the call being left blank.
He argues that it may be because the caller from the Obamas’ property didn’t dial 911, which automatically generates location data, and instead made a direct call to a business line.
The police chief also said the address was listed as Wilson’s Landing because that was the public launch used as the command post.
At the time of the call, authorities didn’t know where the drowning occurred so used the staging site for the incident location, according to the police chief.
Slay report: The Obamas’ extravagant property boasts a private beach from which a paddle board can be easily launched.
Questions are also being raised about where the Obamas were when the incident happened.
The Obamas’ office first claimed that Barack and Michelle were not at their Martha’s Vineyard estate at the time of the drowning.
However, the story later changed when it was revealed they were on Martha’s Vineyard but not at home during the incident. But Campbell was reported missing on Sunday night and found dead on Monday morning so it is unclear why the Obamas would be on the island but not at their home.
The maximum length of the island is 20.5 miles so everywhere on Martha’s Vineyard is easily accessible with a short drive.
It’s also unclear if the Obamas’ daughters Sasha and Malia – who were also in town – were at home, or out with friends or their parents.
The Obamas’ office has yet to issue a statement to clarify who was in the house when Campbell’s drowning occurred.
Dispatch calls between the emergency services on Martha’s Vineyard confirm there was a second paddleboarder on the water with Campbell.
They also confirm that the original 911 call to report what had happened came from an unidentified “female” who, by 8.18 pm, was out on the water on a boat going “back and forth” – presumably looking for him.
“We met with the reporting party, she is on a boat with two individuals and they’re going back and forth as well,” said one of the rescuers at 8.23 pm.
It’s unclear if the mysterious female is the same person Campbell was paddleboarding with.
Campbell’s body was recovered on Monday at 10 am – more than 12 hours after he fell into the water. He was found 100ft from shore in around 8ft of water.
Yet, further adding to the mystery, Campbell prided himself on being a skilled swimmer. He frequently posted videos and images to social media showing himself swimming laps. One video was even labeled with the hashtag “#survivalskills,” which makes his tragic drowning in shallow water all the more perplexing.
Massachusetts State Police have concluded that Campbell’s death is not suspicious.