Obama personal chef dies on Obama estate

The personal chef to Barack Obama, who had served him in the White House, died yesterday under mysterious circumstances. Divers recovered his body from Edgartown Great Pond, which backs onto Obama’s multimillion-dollar Martha’s Vineyard estate.

Obama loses a friend – but how?

Tafari Campbell, who went from the White House kitchen to become chef at the Obama estate, went missing July 23. Witnesses told the Edgartown Police that he was on a paddleboard in Edgartown Great Pond, according to Todd Starnes. For reasons no one has elucidated, he was wearing an all-black outfit, at night, and without a life jacket. (That last part put Campbell in violation of Massachusetts state law.) He slipped beneath the surface, came up again trying to stay afloat, then went down again and stayed down. That happened before 8:00 p.m. Divers recovered his hat and paddleboard. At 10:00 a.m. July 24, divers recovered his body from eight feet of water 100 feet away from shore.

The Martha’s Vineyard Times reports that 911 calls came from the estate, and first responders reported there at 7:45 p.m. The Obamas were not in residence at the time, though Massachusetts State Police did not confirm this until later.

Campbell, 43, is survived by a wife and twin sons, according to a statement the Obamas issued lamenting his death.

Speculation centers on a second paddleboarder who was with Campbell in Edgartown Great Pond at the time.

No one has yet identified this other person. Other speculation centers on Campbell’s proficiency as a swimmer.

Until authorities identified Campbell, speculation about security at the estate, or what role Obama might have played, was rife.

So was the speculation about what he was wearing at the time.