Did Barack and Michelle Obama's story change about where they were when their personal chef Tafari Campbell drowned near their Massachusetts home, "altering the story to say they were indeed on the property" when Campbell went missing? No, that's not true: Massachusetts State Police said in a statement that the former president and his wife were "not present at the residence at the time of the accident," and that detail has not changed.
The claim appeared in an article published by the Gateway Pundit on July 25, 2023, titled "WOW - Story Changes: Barack and Michelle Obama WERE on Martha's Vineyard When Their Private Chef Mysteriously Drowned" (archived here). It opened:
Some would call this an interesting coincidence while others may suspect something more.
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WOW - Story Changes: Barack and Michelle Obama WERE on Martha's Vineyard When Their Private Chef Mysteriously Drowned | The Gateway Pundit | by Cullen Linebarger
Some would call this an interesting coincidence while others may suspect something more.
The article said:
It turns out that Barack and Michelle Obama were on Martha's Vineyard at the same time their personal chef drowned under mysterious circumstances.
Obama's office previously claimed that the former president and his wife were not present at the residence when Tafari drowned. Now they are altering the story to say they were indeed on the property.
In fact, state police released a statement that the Obamas were not "present at the residence," and did not confirm that they were "on the property." Multiple news outlets such as The New York Times and Fox News reported that they were not at their home when Campbell went missing while paddle boarding. The Boston Globe reported, "Obama's office said the couple were elsewhere on the island Sunday night." There have been no subsequent news reports that say they were home at the time.
The Massachusetts State Police released a statement titled, "UPDATE #3-Joint Search Operation Underway for Missing Paddle Boarder on Edgartown Great Pond," that said:
President and Mrs. Obama were not present at the residence at the time of the accident.
The Edgartown Police Department's official Facebook page posted a link to the Vineyard Gazette newspaper story published July 23, 2023, that wrote about the Obamas:
The Obama family owns a home on the cove. Mr. Obama and his wife Michelle Obama were not at the residence at the time of the accident, state police said.
The Obamas' office declined to comment to Lead Stories beyond directing us to the Massachusetts State Police statement that said the Obamas were not at the residence when the incident occured. If that office does respond with further information, this story will be updated as appropriate.
Other Lead Stories fact checks about the Obamas can be found here.
