Police Say Naya Rivera “Mustered Enough Energy” To Save Son “But Not Enough To Save Herself”

Glee actress Naya Rivera was able to save her son but not herself during the tragic swim that took her life.

A boat trip and swim at Lake Piru in Ventura County, Calif., with the actress and her four-year-old son, ended with Rivera losing her life after saving her son. Police found her body on Monday after a five-day search. According to Ventura County Sheriff Bill Ayub, the boy told investigators that he looked back and saw her disappear under the surface of the water.

“We know from speaking with her son, that he and Naya swam in the lake together at some point during their journey. It was during that time that her son described being helped into the boat by Naya, who boosted him onto the deck from behind,” Ayub said. “He told investigators that he looked back and saw her disappear under the surface of the water.” He continued saying, “there are a lot of currents on the lake that appear particularly in the afternoon” and that authorities believe the actress disappeared in the “mid-afternoon.”

“The idea perhaps being that the boat started drifting, it was unanchored, and that she mustered enough energy to get her son back onto the boat, but not enough to save herself,” Ayub said. Police say there is no indication of foul play or suicide, Entertainment Weekly reports. An autopsy will be performed at the Ventura County Medical Examiner’s Office, and Rivera will be officially identified using dental records.

During the news conference, Ayub said Rivera’s son was asleep and alone when he was found in the boat. “Naya’s son was later found asleep on the boat, which was adrift in a northern portion of the lake known as ‘The Narrows’ when a leasing agent searched for the watercraft, which was overdue for return. The young boy was wearing a life vest when he was found, and he was wrapped in a towel,” Ayub said.

“An adult size life vest was found on the boat. Several witnesses who were at the lake that day have been identified and interviewed by sheriffs and investigators,” Ayub explained. “There were three other rental boats on the lake that day. All of the people in those boats have been identified and interviewed. They had seen Naya’s boat at different times and at several different locations while she was out on the lake.”

“Swimming is allowed” in the waters, but Rivera’s death has prompted people to sign petitions calling for signs to be posted about the lake’s dangerous conditions. The site is reportedly where many drownings have happened over the years, EW reports. Ayub said authorities “utilized dozens of personnel: watercraft, helicopters, with unmanned aerial systems, and on the shore, conducting a methodical and comprehensive search.” He continued: “She was found in a northeastern portion of the lake, near the surface of the water. Depth of the water is between 35 and 60-feet deep; there is heavy brush and trees on the lakebed there.” Rivera leaves behind her son, Josey, whom she shares with ex-husband Ryan Dorsey.