Details are surfacing about the other victims in the Sunday morning helicopter crash that killed Kobe Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter Gianna. After Bryant’s representative confirmed Gianna was one of the deceased parties via TMZ, ESPN reporter Adrian Wojnarowski, a renowned NBA reporter, stated that two other parties in the crash was someone who played basketball with Gianna and a parent. Their identities have not been released as of press time.
Sources: Kobe Bryant was on his way to a travel basketball game with his daughter Gianna when the helicopter crashed. Those aboard the helicopter also included another player and parent.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) January 26, 2020
Reports have also stated that there was a fifth victim in the accident. It is unclear if this was the aircraft’s pilot or another unidentified person.
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Wojnarowski reported that those traveling in the helicopter were on their “way to a travel basketball game.” A slightly differing source comes in the form of TMZ, which reports reports that the destination was a basketball practice at Mamba Sports Academy, a human performance training facility founded in 2018 by Kobe Bryant and Sports Academy CEO Chad Faulkner. The facility is located in Newbury Park, California.
Social media chatter had originally claimed that either all four of Bryant’s daughters were in the crash with him or none of them were, but neither case appears to be true. Gianna has been confirmed to be on board, but Bryant’s three other children — Natalia, 17, Bianka, 3, and Capri, 7 months — are believed to be safe. Bryant’s wife, 37-year-old Vanessa Bryant, is also believed to be safe.
Other bogus reports have claimed that fellow Lakers legend Rick Fox was on board the helicopter, but that has also been proven false. Fox has been active on Twitter today, and his attorney has confirmed to TMZ that he was not with Bryant at the time of his death.
The cause of the accident is not yet clear, but authorities are investigating the matter. Witnesses speaking to various media outlets and authorities on the case have stated that there seemed to be something wrong with the aircraft’s engine before it crashed. Smoke was visible at the scene of the wreck once first responders and media arrived.
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