The heartbroken sister of a flight attendant who mysteriously fell 24 stories to her death outside a Hawaii hotel insists “she didn’t do this intentionally,” despite authorities ruling the tragedy a suicide.
Jenny Lupton, a 50-year-old mother from Moore, Oklahoma, had spent nearly three decades working as a flight attendant, building a career that took her around the world while raising her 15-year-old son.
In August, the longtime Southwest Airlines employee traveled to Hawaii for work and decided to extend her stay for several days, giving herself some time on the island before returning home.
But on Aug. 20, her visit ended in tragedy when a hotel employee discovered her body outside the Hilton Hawaiian Village in Waikiki, where she had been staying during her trip. Lupton was reportedly found near a dumpster after allegedly falling from the hotel’s 24th floor, prompting Honolulu police to investigate the circumstances surrounding her death.
“This is a thorough investigation that will take time,” police said in a statement shared on Facebook. “Detectives are conducting numerous interviews, reviewing and recovering surveillance video, and examining evidence as part of the investigative process.”
Nearly two months later, officials have released their findings, although the determination has not resolved the concerns previously raised by Lupton’s family.
Cause of death revealed
On Oct. 15, the Honolulu Department of the Medical Examiner confirmed that Lupton died from multiple injuries and officially classified her death as suicide, according to People.
The ruling came after weeks of uncertainty surrounding the circumstances of her fall, which had left relatives questioning how the experienced flight attendant’s trip could have ended so suddenly.
Southwest Airlines previously confirmed that Lupton died during a layover, but for those closest to her, the loss was far more than the death of a longtime employee.
‘She will always be a part of me’
Her niece, Hannah Lupton, who followed her aunt into the airline industry, remembered Jenny as her “inspiration” and “second mom.”
“As I keep reaching for the sky, I’ll always be reminded of who brought me there from the start. You were not just my aunt, but my inspiration, my best friend, my supporter, and my second mom,” Hannah shared in an emotional Facebook post.
“While you deserved to be here, and we deserved to have you, I will continue to struggle with the realization that I won’t soar the skies with you again,” she continued.
“As I keep reaching for the sky, I’ll always be reminded of who brought me there from the start. You were not just my aunt, but my inspiration, my best friend, my supporter, and my second mom…Jenny, I’m not sure how to live life without you. What I do know is that I have to,” Hannah wrote, concluding the message with, “Fly high, Jenny.”
While Hannah remembered the joy her aunt brought to those around her, Jenny’s final conversations with her sister, Tresa Lupton, raised troubling questions about the circumstances surrounding her death.
‘Didn’t do this intentionally’
Just hours before her death, Jenny had spent the evening dancing with a fellow flight attendant and getting a new tattoo that held special meaning for her family.
According to Tresa, her sister’s new hibiscus tattoo was a tribute to their father, who used to grow the flowers outside their childhood home.
“She had just gotten a tattoo hours before this happened, and she messaged me. She said that when she gets back, she’s going to have it colored in because it was just the outline,” Tresa told KFOR.
That message, sent just hours before Jenny’s death, only deepened her family’s doubts about her taking her own life.
“We strongly believe that she didn’t do this intentionally, and so that leads us to think it was either some kind of freak accident or someone harmed her,” Tresa told the outlet. “We just want to know what happened.”
In an interview with News9, Tresa said she’s traveling with family to Hawaii to “see for ourselves how this all went down,” adding that “the Lupton family deserves to have answers about this tragedy.”
“The timeline doesn’t make sense, and we are afraid that maybe there was foul play,” Tresa said.
Sister confirms investigation still open
Meanwhile, on Facebook, the flight attendant’s grieving sister confirmed that despite the medical examiner’s Oct. 15 ruling, “Jenny’s death remains under investigation by the Honolulu Police Department.”
“Our concern is that conclusions are being reached without all the available evidence being fully evaluated,” Tresa shared after the coroner ruled her death a suicide.
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