Some of the details surrounding the death of former UCLA basketball player Jalen Hill are becoming clearer, but an investigation into the cause of his death is ongoing in Costa Rica.
The forensic analysis of skeletal remains found last month in Costa Rica has been confirmed by Hill’s, Costa Rican law enforcement authorities confirmed Thursday.
Hill’s father posted on Instagram Tuesday announcing the 22-year-old’s death and that Hill was missing in Costa Rica.
The office of the Organismo de Investigación Judicial Los Santos of Costa Rica carried out the DNA analysis with samples of family members after the discovery of the remains in the sector of Napoles de Tarrazu, at the intersection between Naranjillo de Tarrazu and Santa Juana de Quepos on Monday, August 8. said an OIJ spokesperson.
Hill and her sister, Tatianna, arrived in Costa Rica in April. The two “…explored jungles and beaches together, went on Airbnb, ate great fresh ocean food and smoked great weed lol…” she wrote on his Instagram on Tuesday.
Tatianna writes about a farm they visited in Costa Rica, south of San Jose. This is the last place she saw him, according to her post.
“He was only here with me a few days before he disappeared. I didn’t have enough time to figure out what was going on with him. He stopped letting me in. It’s still a mystery to me,” she wrote.
Tatianna remained in Costa Rica until Hill’s body was identified.
“I came to Costa Rica with my best friend and now I’m leaving without you. You rest in true paradise now and I have to accept it,” she wrote on Instagram.
Hill, a 6-foot-10 center from Corona Centennial High, was a beloved and often smiling teammate who played at every level, from club to college. The basketball community mourns his death.
“I don’t know where to start,” Etop Udo-Ema, Founder and CEO of Compton Magic, wrote via Twitter. “When we first met, you were still wearing the glasses. Becoming a great player and a young man at UCLA. We’ve traveled all over the world together. [Compton] Magic, UCLA, USA. I hope you know how much I love you and it hurts not to be able to tell you one more time.
David Grace, a former UCLA assistant coach who now coaches high school basketball in Arizona, also shared his condolences.
“I’m so overwhelmed to hear the news of Jalen Hill’s passing! Devastating! Had a wonderful smile and was always great to be there! Loved our conversation! Deepest condolences! RIP Jalen!” tweeted Grace.
Hill has been transparent about her struggle with anxiety and depression following an international shoplifting scandal. He and teammates Cody Riley and LiAngelo Ball were arrested after stealing items from three stores during the team’s trip to China to face Georgia Tech in November 2017, resulting in one-season suspensions, and he shared his emotions after leaving the team.
He said his arrest in China at the age of 17, coupled with the various changes around him, affected him on and off the pitch.
“With the whole Chinese episode, then the next year my coach (Steve Alford) was fired, then we had an interim coach, then a new coach (Mick Cronin),” Hill told the Southern reporter. California News Group, James Williams, in a telephone interview. . “It was just a lot of new things happening in my life.”
Hill graduated from Corona Centennial High in 2017 after averaging 18.8 points and 12.5 rebounds per game in his senior year.
He arrived in Westwood this fall for his freshman year and donned the redshirt for the 2017-18 season before playing 77 games at UCLA over three seasons, including 40 starts, averaging 6.5 points, 6.4 career rebounds and eight double-doubles. He cited anxiety and depression as reasons for leaving the team in February 2021,
“The news of Jalen Hill’s passing is heartbreaking. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family at this time,” UCLA coach Mick Cronin wrote via Twitter Tuesday evening. with a big smile that left us far too soon.”