The person who was paddleboarding with the Obamas’ personal chef when he drowned near their Martha’s Vineyard estate had tried desperately to save him, according to officials.
The unidentified fellow paddleboarder tried to swim to Tafari Campbell, 45, but “did not reach him in time,” Massachusetts State Police said in a statement, MassLive reported.
The person, who saw Campbell losing his balance and falling into the water, then swam to shore and alerted someone who then called 911, according to the report.
A witness saw Campbell — who was not wearing a life jacket and wasn’t tethered to the board — struggling to stay afloat in his final moments, officials said.
The probe into the tragedy has been completed and there was no evidence to suggest that the death was suspicious, police said, adding that an autopsy also has been completed but that a toxicology report could take weeks.
Campbell was found Monday in eight feet of water about 100 feet from the banks of the Obamas’ property on Edgartown Great Pond.
Authorities first responded to reports of a possible drowning at Turkeyland Cove Road on Sunday evening.
The former First Family was not home at the time of the tragedy, officials said.
“My heart is broken. My life and our family’s life is forever changed,” Sherise Campbell wrote of her husband on Instagram on Tuesday.
Campbell — who also leaves behind two sons — was a sous chef at the White House during Obama’s terms in office, where he was known for brewing beer using honey from Michelle Obama’s bees.
When the Obamas left DC, Campbell joined their personal staff.
“Tafari was a beloved part of our family,” they said in a joint statement Monday. “Today we join everyone who knew and loved Tafari — especially his wife Sherise and their twin boys, Xavier and Savin — in grieving the loss of a truly wonderful man.”
All things are possible. All depends upon what you want to see or what “they” do not want you to see.