Authorities Confirm Body Found at Lake Piru Is ‘Glee’ Star Naya Rivera

• Authorities confirmed Naya Rivera died during a boat ride on California’s Lake Piru.
• A search and rescue operation was conducted after her 4-year-old son, Josey, was found alone on the boat.
• The Glee star shared joint custody of Josey with her ex Ryan Dorsey. Josey was picked up by Naya’s family amid the search and rescue.
• The Ventura County Sheriff’s Department confirmed on Monday, July 13, that the body they found is Naya.

After a “large-scale search and rescue operation,” authorities confirmed that actress Naya Rivera died during a boat ride with her 4-year-old son, Josey Dorsey. On Monday, July 13, the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department tweeted that a body had been found and later confirmed it was Naya during a press conference.

Naya was reported missing on Wednesday, July 8, when she rented a boat for a three-hour ride on California’s Lake Piru and didn’t return it on time. According to the sheriff’s department, when the three-hour time limit passed, personnel began to search for her. In a statement, the department added:

“[They] found her boat adrift with Naya’s 4-year-old son asleep on the boat and Naya was nowhere to be found. This is an active investigation. It is believed that Naya and her son were swimming in the lake near the boat and as they were getting back into the boat, her son made it into the boat and Naya went underwater and did not resurface.”

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just the two of us

A post shared by Naya Rivera (@nayarivera) on Jul 7, 2020 at 3:15pm PDT

They found Josey onboard with a life vest on, but there was a second vest, suggesting Naya didn’t wear hers.

During the press conference this afternoon, Ventura County Sheriff Ayub said, “We are confident the body we found is that of Naya Rivera,” and cited the location they found her as well as her physical characteristics. They suspect there was no foul play involved. The department has been in contact with Naya’s family this entire time and extended their condolences to her family, friends, and fans.

Naya, of course, is most known for her role as Santana Lopez, a top cheerleader who dominated every “diva-off” in Glee Club. After Glee, she went on to pursue a solo music career, star in films and other hit shows like Devious Maids, and write her own memoir. Before she passed, she responded favorably to a tweet declaring fans would “1000000% support” her publishing a second.

Naya is preceded in death by Glee costars Mark Salling and Cory Monteith, who passed away seven years ago today. She is survived by her son, her sister, Nickayla Rivera, her brother, Mychal Rivera, and her parents, Yolanda and George Rivera. Josey is currently with Naya’s family and is said to be “in good health.”