A Secret Service agent at Barack Obama’s Martha’s Vineyard estate called 911 and asked for help rescuing chef Tafari Campbell after he fell from a paddleboard, according to dramatic audio recordings of the calls obtained by .
“We have a man drowning in the back of the property right now,” the agent named Dave tells a dispatcher at the 911 center on the evening of July 23. “We have our lifeguards. They’re just trying to get out of there.”
The agent reported that there were already swimmers in the water trying to find the fallen “house guest.”
Audio recordings from two initial calls shared Tuesday by the Dukes County Sheriff’s Office were heavily redacted, omitting names and other details about those involved and the property.
But the calls show early chaos as Secret Service, employees and others on the scene scrambled to get help after the Obamas’ personal chef, Campbell, 45, fell into the water.
The former president arrived a few minutes later, but there was no mention of him in the calls, nor was there a message from another paddle boarder who was with Campbell at the time. According to sources, was a 26-year-old Mrs. Obama staffer.
Campbell’s body was found in shallow water the next morning by a rescue boat equipped with sonar. Investigators declared early on that it was an accidental drowning accident, but continued to cover up even basic information after the case was declared closed.
has obtained the 911 call from Barack Obama’s Secret Service agents after chef Tafari Campbell fell off a paddleboard on Martha’s Vineyard
The Obama residence on Martha’s Vineyard. Tafari Campbell, 45, visited the resort island in late July and paddled near the Obamas’ summer home
Campbell had been paddling with a woman, another Obama staffer, when he fell off his board and drowned in Edgartown Great Pond on July 23
The first call came at 7:46 p.m.
“911 call, this line is recorded, where is your emergency?” the male dispatcher asks, followed by a 10-second beep that drowns out the first response.
It begins with the Secret Service agent announcing the drowning and rescue act. A boat was already on site, he noted.
“A lifeguard and an agent are heading there to get on the boat,” the federal agent told the dispatcher.
“Someone came running up to our back post and said a gentleman, he was just a guest in the house, he was drowning out there,” Dave continued. “So right now our lifeguard is going out there.”
Another beep sounds in the audio and then the dispatcher asks about access to the property and what other resources are needed.
“Do you also need an ambulance or water rescue?” asks the dispatcher.
The agent pauses to ask those who were with him at the property and then replies to the dispatcher: “They have not given any advice at the moment.” I would say at least one ambulance. I don’t know what they’re doing behind the property right now. We have our lifeguard taking over the boat right now. So, um, I would say at least an ambulance.’
The dispatcher tells him he will send an ambulance and contact the fire chief to ask for an additional boat.
After another eight seconds of beeping, the agent asks the dispatcher if there is an alternate number they can call for follow-up communications.
“I don’t know if you have a better number to call you back when we get him out of the water,” the agent explains. “And I can give you a situation report. They are not providing any information over the radio at this time.’
“Yes, I can give you that if you want,” the dispatcher replies and gives him the office number.
The agent notes that the gate is open for an ambulance, then ends the call after 3 minutes and 26 seconds with a basic description of the drowned person – a man in his 40s.
The second phone call begins three minutes later, with the same agent saying he still couldn’t find the paddler.
“They’re out in the water right now, but they don’t know where he is yet,” he said.
The dispatcher asks for more information about the victim and receives a more detailed description.
“He’s dressed all in black, he’s sitting on a paddleboard, he’s about 40 years old, a black gentleman, of normal build,” the agent replied. “And we now have our lifeguards on a boat in the area.”
The dispatcher asked if the paddle board was found, and the agent replied, “You have the paddle board and his hat.”
The agent also confirmed that he “was not wearing a life jacket.”
The dispatcher ended the second call after 3 minutes and 23 seconds, saying, “So we now have everyone on their way there to meet with you and gather their resources.”
Campbell’s death was officially ruled an accidental drowning, but authorities have yet to determine how an apparently skilled swimmer who was paddleboarding near the ex-president’s summer home could have drowned in the shallow water
The chef was originally hired by the George W. Bush White House and remained there when Obama won the presidency. He left in 2017 to work for the Obamas. Here he is pictured with his family
Campbell’s death was officially ruled an accidental drowning, but authorities have yet to determine how an apparently skilled swimmer who was paddleboarding near the ex-president’s summer home could have drowned in the shallow water.
Details have since emerged from unofficial sources, with exclusively revealing that Campbell’s paddle-boarding companion was a young woman who worked in the Obama household.
Justin Silverman, executive director of the New England First Amendment Coalition, said Massachusetts police are abusing freedom of information laws
In releasing the summary conclusion of a chief medical examiner’s report, officials refused to reveal even basic findings, such as whether Campbell had suffered a medical event or was under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
State police have also warned other law enforcement agencies not to release information.
With the case now closed, Edgartown police released an incident report in late August that confirmed it was a Secret Service agent who made the 911 call – as initially reported, but redacted his name and omitted information about the other paddle boarder who was the only witness to the drowning.
“At the request of the Massachusetts State Police, the names of the witness and the reporting USSS agent have been redacted,” Edgartown Police Chief Bruce McNamee told when asked for further details.
After 11 days of silence, the head of the region’s First Amendment Coalition told that the state appears to be violating public records law.
“The onus is on law enforcement to demonstrate how their investigations could be compromised by the release of certain information,” Justin Silverman, executive director of the New England First Amendment Coalition, said at the time.
Robert Bertsche, general counsel for the New England Newspaper and Press Association (NENPA), sounded the alarm again in late August, before the redacted 911 call was released.
Former President Barack Obama shared a touching tribute to his personal chef, weeks after he drowned in a pond near his Martha’s Vineyard estate on July 25
Officials refused to reveal even basic information, such as whether Campbell had suffered a medical episode or was under the influence of drugs or alcohol
“The 911 call should definitely be made public,” Bertsche told .
“The same goes for the other details of the now-completed investigation by state or local authorities.” This isn’t just the law – it’s sound public practice.
“When the government keeps secrets, the gap is inevitably filled with conspiracy theories, and that leads to mistrust and distrust of the government,” Bertsche added.
Robert Bertsche, general counsel for the New England Newspaper and Press Association, sounded the alarm again in late August, before the redacted emergency alert was released
“This does not serve the legitimate interests of law enforcement – and certainly not the public, who has a right to know how the police came to their conclusion.”
“By refusing to disclose the details of the investigation, the police have created a cottage industry of rumor mongering and malicious speculation,” he said.
“It’s natural for the public to ask, ‘What do they have to hide?'” ‘
Conspiracy theorists doubt that Obama himself played a role in the alleged cover-up.
Tom Fitton, president of Judicial Watch, a conservative activist group that has also appealed for information about the case, quickly pounced on a report that Campbell was on the pond with an Obama aide.
“Who was this witness who was paddling with him?” Fitton asked .
“Obviously it wasn’t his wife. So who was it? To date, we have not yet had sufficient reason to withhold this information.
“We will be very interested to learn more about communications between the Secret Service and state and local police,” Fitton continued.
“It’s simple information.” What’s the state secret about it, other than protecting Obama, saving him from embarrassment or having to answer questions on the subject?
“That’s why people don’t trust what they’re told about cases like this,” he said.
“What otherwise appears to be a simple tragic accident becomes something else entirely because the government is unlawfully withholding information to protect a politician.”
However, Bersche noted that the Massachusetts State Police are notoriously secretive when it comes to the media.
He cited a 2015 Center for Public Integrity survey that gave the state an “F” for public access to information.
He noted that the Boston Globe had to sue the state police in 2020 for repeated violations of public records law, including failing to respond to his request for information about state troopers who resigned during the controversial handling of the arrest of a Judge’s daughter.
Following the news of Campbell’s untimely death, his wife Sherise shared this photo on Instagram and noted that she was heartbroken.
The department later folded and produced the documents while the Globe collected legal fees, Bersche said.
“Sunlight is the best disinfectant, Supreme Court Justice Brandeis wrote more than a century ago,” he said.
“Those who refuse to provide details about what happened to Tafari Campbell and how the alleged drowning death of this accomplished swimmer was investigated are ensuring that the skies in Massachusetts are indeed cloudy.”
And so, as expected, the conspiracy theorists are having a field day. It’s a stupid practice and a disservice to the public.”
The Edgartown Police Department, which was involved in the initial response but not the follow-up investigation, shared some of its information with in August.