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Police release CCTV footage of Naya Rivera at Lake Piku – after search is shifted to ‘recovery operation’

The actress is presumed dead after going missing on a lake in Southern California

INSTAGRAM

The Ventura County Sheriff’s Office has released CCTV footage of Naya Rivera and her four-year-old son Josey arriving at Lake Piku in Southern California.

The Glee actress was declared missing on Wednesday after her son was found alone on a rented pontoon boat in the middle of the lake.

Over 24 hours after the authorities started searching for Naya, the rescue mission has been shifted to a “recovery” mission as officials fear the 33-year-old is dead after drowning in the lake.

After the search was switched to a recovery operation, police shared security footage of Naya and Josey arriving at Lake Piku on Wednesday afternoon.

Alongside the video, they wrote: “This is the recording from the security camera at the boat launch when Naya Rivera and her son arrived to rent a pontoon boat at Lake Piru. The video will show them departing the dock and travel north in the lake.”

In a statement on Thursday, the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office said they believe Naya drowned in “what appears to be a tragic accident”.

“The search for a missing Los Angeles actress at Lake Piru has turned into a recovery mission as of Thursday morning,” they said.

“Naya Rivera rented a boat at the lake Wednesday afternoon and went for an excursion with her four-year-old son. The boat was found drifting in the northern portion of the lake with the child alone and asleep onboard.”

“Rivera’s son told investigators that he and his mother had been swimming in the lake, and he got back in the boat, but Rivera did not.”

“Approximately 50 sheriff’s personnel, along with a helicopter, boat crews, divers, and unmanned aerial vehicles searched the lake for five hours Wednesday evening, but Rivera could not be found,” the statement continued.

“The entire shoreline and surface of the lake were thoroughly searched. Divers also searched under water in the area where the boat had last been seen. However, there was no sign of Rivera. The search was suspended at 10:00 pm Wednesday night due to zero visibility in the water and dangerous conditions for the divers.”

“The search resumed Thursday morning with divers experiencing less than one foot of visibility in the water in daylight. The difficult conditions have made the recovery operation a very slow process.”

Naya and Josey

“The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department is assisting in the search with divers and sonar equipment. Approximately 100 personnel are participating in the mission on Thursday, including resources from neighboring counties and the United States Coast Guard.”

The statement concluded: “Investigators believe Rivera drowned in what appears to be a tragic accident.

During a press conference, Sheriff Deputy Chris Dyer also confirmed that there are “no signs of foul play” and “no signs of anything that went wrong besides a tragic accident.”

Mr Dyer also said that Naya had visited Lake Piru on previous occasions and was familiar with the area.

On the latest episode of Goss Chats, Ali Ryan sits down with Selling Sunset’s Christine Quinn, who reveals the real drama between the women on the show, and how she battled coronavirus on her wedding day.

#GossChats is sponsored by top Irish aesthetic clinic Haus of JeJuve, which is now back open for bookings.

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