After three days of frantically searching for Naya Rivera, the Ventura County Sherif’s Office delivered an update on the scary situation in a July 10 press conference. Authorities have intensified their search by using even more methods to find the 33-year-old Glee alum. They also have no plans to stop for the sake of the mother’s family.
“Our investigators have been in contact with the family since the beginning of this. We have a liaison with the family, working with them, and, of course, they are going through an extremely difficult time. We’re trying to do everything we can to provide as much resources as we can and provide some closure for them,” Captain Eric Buschow, a spokesperson for the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office, announced on Friday.
These “resources” now include cadaver dogs (canines trained to detect human remains), sonar devices and a Coast Guard helicopter. The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department has also become involved in the search. Overall, the search has enlisted divers, boats, ATVs, divers and ground personnel. Regardless, this hasn’t made the operation any easier.
Today’s search at Lake Piru involves the use of sophisticated sonar equipment in the effort to locate Naya Rivera. We are being assisted by @TulareSheriff @LASDHQ and @USCGLosAngeles There will be a media update at 3 pm.
— Ventura Co. Sheriff (@VENTURASHERIFF) July 10, 2020
“Wherever she went down, they’re confident that that’s where she’ll be found, it’s just finding that spot that’s the difficult part,” Capt. Buschow explained during the press conference. Noting the lake’s two-mile length and its deepest point, which measures about 130 feet deep, he said that there is “a lot of area to cover.”
2/2 Here’s an example of the underwater visibility at a 30-foot depth in Lake Piru. pic.twitter.com/YGNNUdmPQ4
— Ventura Co. Sheriff (@VENTURASHERIFF) July 11, 2020
On July 8, Naya took out a pontoon boat on a three-hour rental period with her four-year-old son, Josey Hollis Dorsey. “She was supposed to be bring the boat back at four p.m. At around 4:30, when she didn’t return the boat, the concession workers that are responsible for renting the boats went out looking for her and that’s when they found the boat and placed the call to 911,” Sgt. Kevin Donoghue from the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office explained in a press conference on July 9.
Naya’s son was found sleeping alone on the boat, which also contained his mom’s purse, ID and life vest. Investigators believed that Naya “drowned in what appeared to be a tragic accident,” according to a community message from the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office released on July 9. The sergeant even feared that if this is true, Naya’s body “may never come back up” if it became “entangled in something beneath the water” (he noted that there are “a lot of trees and plants” in Lake Piru’s waters).
Naya’s son has reunited with his father, Naya’s ex-husband Ryan Dorsey, 36. The little boy was seen in Ryan’s arms on July 9, while the duo left the home of Naya’s sister Nickayla Rivera. The following day, Ryan was seen visiting the home of Naya’s mother, Yolanda Rivera,in Valencia, CA.