California authorities said Monday Glee actress Naya Rivera, who went missing five days ago on Lake Piru with her son, helped her child get on their boat before she drowned. During a Monday press conference, the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office announced that they are “confident” they pulled Rivera’s body from the lake. The Ventura County Coroner’s Office has not yet identified the body or conducted an autopsy.
Rivera, 33, went missing during a boating trip with her son, Josey, on Wednesday afternoon. The 4-year-old was found asleep on the boat in a life vest during the evening and told investigators that he and his mother went swimming. But after he got back on the boat with her help, she disappeared “under the surface.” Ventura County Sheriff Bill Ayub said that while it would be “speculation” to say what happened during the outing, “there are a lot of currents that appear on the lake in the afternoon.” “She mustered enough energy to get her son back on the boat but not enough to save herself,” he said. “Naya Rivera was a fierce talent with so much more to do and this is such a terrible tragedy,” Ayub added.
