Kobe Bryant's sister Sharia Washington is paying tribute to her late brother and niece.
On Wednesday (February 26), Sharia shared an Instagram photo of a tattoo she got in Kobe and Gianna's honor.
For her new ink, Sharia got a snake, a reference to Kobe's nickname "Black Mamba," in the shape of an infinity symbol with Kobe and Gigi's basketball jersey numbers — 24 and 2, respectively — inside it. In her caption, Sharia thanked the tattoo artist Peter Barrios for the special tribute to late loved ones.
Kobe's wife, Vanessa, also shared a photo of Sharia's tattoo to her own Instagram, writing, "(My sister-in-law got this cool tattoo to honor #GigiBryant and #Kobe) ❤️❤️ 2~24 forever. Love you @shariawash - ❤️."
Sharia and her sister Shaya Bryant-Tabb released a joint statement five days after Kobe, Gigi, and seven others, lives were claimed in a tragic helicopter crash.
"On behalf of our family, we join Vanessa,Natalia,Bianka and Capri in grieving the loss of Kobe and Gianna in such a tragic accident," she wrote, naming Kobe's surviving children. "We are devastated by the loss of our brother, son, our niece and granddaughter, and our hearts go out to all the families who lost their loved ones on Sunday (January 26). Our lives are forever changed."
"Thank you for your prayers, the numerous calls, texts, emails and cards," she added. "Please visit MambaOnThree.org to support the families affected by Sunday’s tragedy and to honor Kobe and Gianna’s legacy, please visit: MambaSportsFoundation.org."