Naya Rivera’s four-year-old son recalls swimming before mum’s disappearance
The four-year-old son of actress Naya Rivera was found alone, adrift in a boat hours after footage showed the pair arriving at Lake Piru.
A mother-and-son day trip on a lake turned to tragedy when actress Naya Rivera failed to return to her rented boat after reportedly taking a dip in the water with her son.
In chilling CCTV footage from Wednesday, the actress is seen pulling up at Lake Piru in her black Mercedes, before getting out of the car with her four-year-old son Josey and boarding the boat they hired.
It was the last time she was seen.
What happened between the mother and son leaving their car, and when the little boy was found adrift and unaccompanied in the boat, remains a mystery.
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FINAL MOMENTS
The 16-minute long CCTV footage of Rivera and her son on their way to the dock could be the final moments of the star’s life, as the search, which authorities are now calling a “recovery operation”, has passed the 24-hour mark.
The 33-year-old former Glee actress had ventured out on Lake Piru, in southern California, with Josey, but three hours after renting the craft, about 5pm, the young boy was found sleeping alone in the boat by shocked fellow boaters.
According to the initial 911 call and reports from local authorities, the little boy recalled taking a swim with his mum on Wednesday afternoon local time, before returning to the vessel alone.
Police have released the 911 call that first reported Rivera missing, detailing how her unaccompanied son was found by a couple on the lake.
A woman told the emergency call operator that her husband was one of the people who discovered the boat in which Josey was found.
The woman mistakenly referred to the child as a girl in the call.
“The emergency is we have a missing person, we found a little girl in one of the boats by themself and the mum’s nowhere to be found,” the woman told the 911 operator. “My husband was one of the people that was there.”
The woman didn’t have too many extra details, telling the 911 operator: “I’m going to find out more information, he just wanted to call it in.”
Josey was reportedly found wearing a life vest, while Naya’s adult-sized vest was left in the boat, with other items including Rivera’s wallet and food she had packed for the outing.
He is said to have recalled swimming with his mum, before returning to the boat alone. His mother never came back. Authorities have labelled the tragedy “a horrible accident”, believing she drowned.
Captain Eric Buschow of Ventura County Sheriff’s Department told the LA Times Josey was “in good health” following the ordeal.
“The family is going through a very traumatic time right now,” Captain Buschow said, later telling NBC LA: “This is considered to be a horrible accident.”
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Authorities are still searching the lake, but have described it as a “recovery operation” meaning the actress is presumed dead.
“All indications point to (an accidental drowning). These big reservoirs, there is a lot that goes on. There are plenty of currents. People drown in California lakes every year,” Captain Buschow said.
Lake Piru has been the site of several drownings due to its dangerous conditions.
According to the Los Angeles Times, about seven people drowned in the reservoir between 1994 and 2000.
Douglas West, Lake Piru’s parks and recreation services manager at the time of the 2000 article, counted about a dozen drownings during his 23 years there.
The Times noted that “most drowning victims were swimmers venturing into restricted waters.”
“The only thing I can emphasise is that if swimmers are around water, they need to wear a personal flotation device whether they know how to swim or not,” West told the newspaper.
“That will save their lives.”
The star’s vehicle, a black Mercedes G Wagon, was later found in the car park with her handbag inside.
Ventura County Sheriff Deputy Chris Dyer said Rivera is now presumed dead, adding he believed a “tragic accident” happened.
“There’s no evidence of foul play at this point,” police spokesperson Eric Buschow added to reporters at the scene today.
According to the LA Times, Sgt Kevin Donoghue said the lake was potentially “hypothermia” cold.
Officials said this morning, local time, recovering a body could take two to three days, or up to a week.
According to a change.org online petition started yesterday begging for clearer signage at the lake following the tragic news, the treacherous conditions of the area may have led to the actress’ drowning.
“Lake Piru is a very deep lake with very bad whirlpools, people have been asking for years for the city to put up warning signs for swimmers,” it reads.
Single mum Rivera, who finalised her divorce from Josey’s father Ryan Dorsey in 2018 following a tumultuous relationship during which she was arrested on domestic battery, was pictured out and about with her son in Los Feliz, California just last week.
The actress wore a grey mask and matching cap and shirt as she ran errands with her little boy.
An eerie prediction of her final moments before the tragedy, Rivera’s last post on Instagram shows the 33-year-old mum in a tight embrace with Josey, simply captioned: “Just the two of us.”
Rivera’s life took a turn in late 2017 after she was arrested on domestic battery against actor Ryan Dorsey.
Dorsey claimed that Rivera struck him in the head and face, and hours after the alleged incident, her emotional court appearance was caught on camera for the world to see.
The charge was dropped after Dorsey told prosecutors he didn’t want to proceed.
Rivera had been arrested after an altercation during which she allegedly hit her husband at their West Virginia home. Law enforcement said at the time that alcohol was a factor in the incident.
E! reported, “Naya’s friends and family (were) very concerned for her wellbeing” following the explosive incident.
The pair were married in 2014 but finalised their divorce in 2018 and had joint custody of their four-year-old son.
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