Death of Naya Rivera



On July 8, 2020, Rivera was declared a missing person after her four-year-old son, Josey, was found alone in Rivera's rented boat at Lake Piru. About three hours after they left the dock, another boater discovered Josey asleep on the boat with his life jacket on. An adult life jacket was also found on board, along with Rivera’s identification. Josey is said to have told investigators that his mother was swimming and could not make it back to the boat. Her vehicle, a black Mercedes G Wagon was found in the parking lot. The Ventura County Sheriff's Department suspended the search and rescue operation that evening but announced their intention to resume their efforts at daybreak.

After a second day of searching for her, Rivera was still not found and as they suspended the investigation for yet another night, it was confirmed that she was presumed to have drowned. They changed the investigation from a search-and-rescue mission to a recovery mission.

On July 10th, it was announced that they would begin to use dogs that are trained to smell gasses that come from the human corpse.

On July 13th, it was announced that, in the search for Rivera, a body had been found at Lake Piru; the sheriff's department announced they would hold a press conference at 2:00 pm PDT. The sheriff's department captain, speaking with the Los Angeles Times before the press conference, confirmed the body found was that of Rivera's. He said that it had been discovered by divers almost immediately when the search had resumed in the morning, as it had resurfaced and was floating in the lake. An autopsy confirmed that she had drowned.

She was laid to rest on July 24, 2020, at Forest Lawn Memorial Park cemetery in Hollywood Hills, California.

This page is dedicated to Naya Rivera (January 12, 1987 – July 8, 2020)