According to the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department, former Glee star Naya Rivera is missing. The news of her disappearance broke late Wednesday night.
As NBCLA reports, Rivera was last seen as she and her 4-year-old son Josey rented a boat around 1:00 p.m. on July 8. The mother and son duo took the boat in Lake Piru in the Los Padres National Forest in Ventura County, California.
As of July 9, it’s unclear what happened to the actress. However, roughly three hours after renting the boat, another boater passing by noticed Josey alone in the boat they had just rented. Josey was able to tell investigators that his mother went into the water for a swim, but never came back up or returned to the boat.
According to TMZ, Josey was asleep when the Good Samaritan found him. The 4-year-old has since been declared in good health and is now safe with close family members, presumably his father, Ryan Dorsey. Although Rivera and Dorsey divorced in 2018, the former couple still shares custody of their son.
It’s believed that the 33-year-old was not wearing a life vest when she entered the water to go for a swim, but Josey was. As TMZ reports, her life vest was found laying in the boat where Josey was found.
By the time the search for Rivera was suspended late Wednesday night, authorities found no trace of the actress. The search for the mom of one is expected to pick back up again early Thursday morning.
Naya Rivera’s Last Instagram Post Before Her Disappearance
Just hours before the loving mother disappeared, she posted a beautiful photo of her and her son cuddling each other. She captioned the sweet picture with the words, “just the two of us.”
Heather Morris, who played Rivera’s best friend on Glee, took to her Instagram story late Wednesday night to ask for prayers. ” We need all the prayers we can get to bring our Naya back home to us. We need your love and light.”
And another Glee co-star Harry Shum took to Twitter to say that he is “praying” as well.
The actress’s G-Wagon had been discovered nearby with her purse found inside. Sadly, investigators are presuming Rivera is dead. Our thoughts and prayers are with Josey and the rest of the Rivera family during this difficult time.
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