PHOTOSKobe Bryant & Vanessa's Daughter Gianna's Body Positively Identified By Fingerprint After Helicopter Crash
Jan. 30 2020, Updated 11:46 a.m. ET
Kobe Bryant and Vanessa's daughter Gianna's body was positively identified by fingerprint following the helicopter crash. The NBA legend, his daughter and seven others lost their lives in the accident on Sunday, January 26.
"Through the use of DNA and fingerprints, the Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner-Coroner has identified all nine of the victims who died in a helicopter crash on Sunday," the Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner-Coroner announced on January 29.
On January 28, Kobe, John Altobelli, Sarah Chester, and pilot Ara Zobayan's deaths were confirmed through the use of fingerprints. Just one day later, Gianna, Payton Chester, Alyssa Altobelli, Keri Altobelli and Christina Mauser were confirmed dead.
On Sunday, January 26, Kobe's helicopter crashed in Calabasas, California. There were no survivors.
A few days after, Kobe's wife, Vanessa, broke her silence on Instagram. First, she made her Instagram public and updated her profile photo to a beautiful photo of Gianna looking up at her father.
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Just hours later on Wednesday, January 29, Vanessa posted an emotional message. "My girls and I want to thank the millions of people who’ve shown support and love during this horrific time. Thank you for all the prayers. We definitely need them. We are completely devastated by the sudden loss of my adoring husband, Kobe — the amazing father of our children; and my beautiful, sweet Gianna — a loving, thoughtful, and wonderful daughter, and amazing sister to Natalia, Bianka, and Capri. We are also devastated for the families who lost their loved ones on Sunday, and we share in their grief intimately. There aren’t enough words to describe our pain right now. I take comfort in knowing that Kobe and Gigi both knew that they were so deeply loved. We were so incredibly blessed to have them in our lives. I wish they were here with us forever. They were our beautiful blessings taken from us too soon."
She continued, "I’m not sure what our lives hold beyond today, and it’s impossible to imagine life without them. But we wake up each day, trying to keep pushing because Kobe, and our baby girl, Gigi, are shining on us to light the way. Our love for them is endless — and that’s to say, immeasurable. I just wish I could hug them, kiss them and bless them. Have them here with us, forever. Thank you for sharing your joy, your grief and your support with us. We ask that you grant us the respect and privacy we will need to navigate this new reality. To honor our Team Mamba family, the Mamba Sports Foundation has set up the MambaOnThree Fund to help support the other families affected by this tragedy. To donate, please go to MambaOnThree.org. To further Kobe and Gianna’s legacy in youth sports, please visit MambaSportsFoundation.org. Thank you so much for lifting us up in your prayers, and for loving Kobe, Gigi, Natalia, Bianka, Capri and me. #Mamba #Mambacita #GirlsDad #DaddysGirls #Family ❤️"
Funeral arrangements and memorial plans for Kobe and Gianna have yet to be announced.
Stay with OKMagazine.com for all updates on the story.
