Actress Naya Rivera, known for 'Glee,' missing and presumed dead after going boating on Southern Calif. lake

Actress Naya Rivera is missing and may have drowned, authorities say, after she went boating and swimming on Lake Piru with her young son on Wednesday.

ByABC7.com staff KABC logo
Thursday, July 9, 2020
Search resumes for missing Glee actress Naya Rivera on Lake Piru
Search efforts continued Thursday for actress Naya Rivera, who is missing and may have drowned at Lake Piru.

LAKE PIRU, Calif. -- Actress Naya Rivera is missing and presumed dead in a possible drowning, authorities said, after she went boating and swimming on Lake Piru in Ventura County, California with her young son on Wednesday.

She rented a boat at the lake with her 4-year-old son Wednesday afternoon, authorities said. About three hours later another boater spotted a boat on the lake drifting with a young child asleep on board. The boater contacted rangers who began a search for the child's parent using an aerial survey and a dive team.

"There's no evidence of foul play at this point," Capt. Eric Buschow of the Ventura County Sheriff's Office told reporters at the scene. "This may well be a case of drowning."

After several hours, authorities suspended the search about 10 p.m. due to hazardous conditions.

Investigators said the child was found wearing a life vest, with an adult's vest also found on the boat. The boy told authorities he had gone swimming with his mother.

The search resumed early Thursday morning, and hours later authorities announced that it had transitioned to a recovery operation.

The 33-year-old Rivera grew up in the Los Angeles area and first began acting as a child, but broke through with a role as a cheerleader on "Glee" and later released her own music.

She married actor Ryan Dorsey in 2014 and they had a son, Josey Hollis, in September 2015. The couple divorced in 2018.