TOPLINE
Glee star Naya Rivera is missing “presumed drowned”, after her four-year-old son was found alone on a boat at California’s Lake Piru on Wednesday afternoon.
US actress Naya Rivera and son Josey Hollis Dorsey arrive for the premiere of “The Lego Movie 2: The … [+]
AFP via Getty Images
KEY FACTS
Ventura County Sheriff’s Office identified a “possible drowning victim” as actress Naya Rivera early on Thursday, with a dive team, helicopter and drone deployed to search for her.
A search and rescue operation will resume on Thursday.
Officers say the actress arrived at the reservoir with her son on Wednesday and rented a pontoon boat, the Daily Mail reports, citing Captain Eric Buschow, spokesman for Ventura County Sheriff’s Office.
The 33-year-old actress had gone swimming with her son in the lake, but only her son returned to the boat, Buschow said.
Staff began searching for the boat at around 1pm after it wasn’t returned and located her son alone in the vessel at around 4pm, but did not find Rivera.
Rivera posted a picture of her and her son on Twitter on Tuesday, with the caption “just the two of us.”
The child is now safe with family members, Buschow said.
Crucial Quote
Buschow told reporters that Rivera and her child “were seen going out on the lake together in the early afternoon, and approximately three hours after they left the dock another boater out on the lake discovered the boat drifting with the [son] on board asleep.
“So they contacted the rangers and began an investigation and we’ve been actively searching for the mother since that time. We have both aerial search going on and our dive team as well.
“Indications are that we believe she did go in the lake. At this point it’s still a search and that’s what we know up to this point.”
Key background
Rivera is best known for her role as Glee’s Santana Lopez until 2015. She married fellow Glee star Ryan Dorsey in 2014 and they had son Josey Hollis in 2015. Rivera and Dorsey eventually split, with their divorce finalised in 2018.
This is a developing story.
