Authorities discovered a body at Lake Piru in Ventura County, California, five days after Naya Rivera went missing during a boat ride with her son.
“A body has been found at Lake Piru this morning,” the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department tweeted on Monday, July 13. “The recovery is in progress.”
The department said a news conference will be held at 2 p.m. PT to announce further information.
The Glee alum, 33, was reported missing on Wednesday, July 8, after her 4-year-old son, Josey, was found alone on the motorized pontoon boat they had rented at the lake. Officials later announced that she was presumed dead.
“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,” the sheriff’s department said in a statement to Us on Wednesday evening.
Josey, whom Rivera shares with ex-husband Ryan Dorsey, was wearing a life vest when he was found safe. An adult-sized jacket was also on board the boat, indicating that the actress did not have hers on.
The day after Rivera disappeared, the sheriff’s department announced it had shifted its search from a rescue mission to a recovery mission. Lake Piru was set to be drained on August 1 to assist in recovery efforts.
“What I suspect is that the winds kicked up. Those pontoon boats are very light, and when you push them, it can get away from you,” Robert Inglis of the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office Search & Rescue Team told Us Weekly exclusively on Sunday, July 12. “She might’ve tried to swim after the boat. … But that’s all speculation. Once we do locate her, that’ll answer a lot more questions.”
Inglis also revealed to Us that the SAG Award winner sent a photo of her son on the boat to a family member before she disappeared. The picture helped authorities determine where to begin their search.
Rivera welcomed Josey in September 2015, one year after she and Dorsey, 36, wed. The former couple divorced in June 2018.