'I am not missing' post appears on actress' Instagram amid bizarre missing person saga
LOS ANGELES (KTLA) – The missing person case involving actress Chanel Banks took another turn on Wednesday night when the 36-year-old apparently posted on social media, announcing that she is "finally free" from the family that has been urgently searching for her.
Banks, according to family members, moved to Los Angeles more than a decade ago to pursue a career in acting. According to her IMDB page, she is best known for her roles on "Gossip Girl," "Blue Bloods" and "Twelve."
Her cousin, Danielle-Tori Singh, recently told Nexstar's KTLA that she never thought her first trip to California would be to look for Banks, who hasn’t been heard from since late October.
“The last text we got from her before her phone went off the grid was Oct. 30,” Singh explained. “I’m not going to leave California until I find my cousin.”
Once she learned that Banks’ phone was dead, and her car and dog were still at her Playa Vista apartment along Jefferson Boulevard, she notified the police.
Banks' family also shared a GoFundMe, organized by Singh, in an attempt to fund search efforts.
However, a series of stories posted to Banks’ personal Instagram account on Wednesday claimed that the 36-year-old is safe, and accused her family of being abusive.
“Please do not donate to any GoFundMe that says I am missing,” the posts read in part. “I am not missing.”
The Instagram account is verified, and was created in April 2021. It has 70 posts, including clips from “Gossip Girls” and photos with her husband, Carlos Jimenez, who spoke to KTLA.
“She had decided she didn’t want to talk to the family anymore due to past issues that they had,” Jimenez told KTLA in a phone interview.
In the apparent Instagram posts on Wednesday, the person claiming to be Banks confirmed that she took a trip to Texas amid family turmoil.
The posts also claimed that Banks and her husband’s family were pursuing a conservatorship, which prompted her to cut off communications.
Los Angeles police previously confirmed to KTLA that they were looking into Banks' disappearance and conducted four separate, unsuccessful welfare checks.
On Wednesday, however, police told KTLA that Banks had been found in Texas on Monday and that they were closing their case. A search of California's missing persons database by KTLA showed Banks is no longer listed. Investigators said no foul play or crime was suspected, and no additional details were immediately available.
Banks' family, however, disagreed with the development. Singh slammed TMZ for reporting that Banks was found, writing on Facebook that "TMZ IS REPORTING FAKE NEWS."
In a lengthy video posted to the platform, Singh said she had seen body camera footage from Texas police showing an interaction with a person authorities claim is Banks. Singh said the woman was not her cousin, claiming police are basing the identification off of the woman having Banks' New York driver's license, which Singh said is 10 years old and expired.
"Please don't stop looking for my cousin," Singh pleaded.
Banks’ mother Judy Singh also flew to L.A. from New York to help with the search.