Naya Rivera's parents break down in tears at Lake Piru as they join search to find missing daughter
The distraught parents of 'Glee' star Naya Rivera, who went missing after going for a swim with her four-year-old son at Lake Piru in South California on July 8, were seen desperately calling out to their still-missing daughter in heartbreaking photos from the scene on Saturday, July 11.
Naya's mother, Yolanda, and her younger brother, Mychal, were seen on July 11 at the dock where their family member disappeared. In photos of the two posted on Twitter by ABC News' Anastasia Elyse, the actress' mother can be seen on her knees with her arms stretched out toward the water as she breaks down in tears. Although her face was not visible in the photo, her pain was clearly visible from her body language. Naya's brother stood beside Yolanda, in a stoic pose, staring out into the waters.
Later on the same day, Naya's father, George, was seen at the lake. As soon as he set his eyes on the lake, he rushed toward the water, wading in knee-deep into Piru. He then doused his face with the water in what looked like a really emotional moment for him. It was obvious that he was desperate to connect with his daughter in any way he could.
The 33-year-old star along with her son Josey reportedly went boating and swimming in the afternoon after renting a pontoon boat on the lake on Wednesday. However, three hours after they sailed, another boater raised the alarm after finding Josey alone on board, asleep. When officers responded to the scene, they found an adult life-vest life jacket there, suggesting Rivera was not wearing one. They also found the actress' wallet and identification on the boat, which helped them to confirm the identity of the missing person.
Chris Dyer, a Ventura County Sheriff officer, said that they are "hopeful" but "realistic" about finding the 'Glee' star. Dyer spoke at a press conference held at the side of the lake on Thursday morning, July 9, as he stated: "I think a tragic accident happened here and it breaks my heart. Not only am I helping search for Ms Rivera but I’m also a father, it really pains me that something that was meant to be so good and so fun, to come out here on the lake, went so bad."
Officer Dyer went on: "The latest is that we’re switching efforts into a search and recovery operation. That doesn’t change anything in the efforts that we’re putting forth to locate her but it changes the title, in a sense. We're presuming that an accident happened, we’re presuming that she drowned in the lake. There are no signs of foul play, no signs that anything went wrong besides a tragic accident." Dyer said: "The goal is still to bring Ms Rivera home to her family so they can have some closure."
Rivera’s son Josey told detectives that her mother "jumped in the water and didn't come back up". Captain Eric Buschow, a spokesman for the Ventura County Sheriff's Office, said: "The [son] said that he had been swimming with his mother and that he got back in the boat and his mum didn't. We know that the [boy] had a life vest on, there was another adult life vest found on the boat. You can imagine it's somewhat challenging interviewing a three-year-old and getting those kinds of details."
He added, "We're going on the belief that she did go in the water, and we've not been able to locate her. This may well be a case of drowning."