The body of actress Naya Rivera found in a Californian lake

The body of Glee TV star Naya Rivera was found Monday in Lake California where she has been missing since last week, local police said. Rescuers were able to rescue the actress' body after locating it floating in the lake and initial reports indicate an accidental drowning, said Bill Ayub, the sheriff for Ventura County, near Los Angeles. "We think the body we discovered is that of Naya Rivera"said the sheriff, citing the whereabouts, appearance, attire and condition of the victim found on Monday morning. The body will be autopsied by a forensic doctor who will confirm the identity with the help of dental impressions but no other disappearance has been reported in Lake Piru, he said.

Read also: Missing after a boat trip, Naya Rivera (Glee) is presumed dead

Naya Rivera, 33, is believed to have accidentally drowned in the lake, a popular nautical base, after having rented a boat on July 8 on which she had embarked with her four-year-old son. It had not reappeared and a major search device had been launched the same day, with divers and helicopters. According to police, the actress' son was found asleep on the boat and wearing a life jacket, a few hours after their departure.

A series of dramas

The child later told investigators that he had gone to swim with his mother in the lake and that the latter had helped him back on board. He then "turned around and saw her disappear beneath the surface of the water," said the sheriff. According to Bill Ayub, the strong currents that sometimes appear in Lake Piru could be the cause of the drama. "It is possible that the boat started to drift - it was not anchored - and that she had enough energy to bring her son on board but not enough to save herself," he said. he says.

The lake had been closed to the public to facilitate research. "We think it was hidden by the vegetation at the bottom of the lake" until it rises to the surface due to the decomposition process, said the sheriff, according to which the visibility does not exceed thirty centimeters deep in the lake.

To read also: Disappearance of Naya Rivera: searches extend around the lake, her family on the spot

Naya Rivera owes her notoriety to the character of Santana Lopez, a student cheerleader whom she played in the six seasons of the Glee series (2009-2015). The actress had more recently appeared in the series Devious Maids and Step Up: High Water . She had divorced in 2018 from the father of the child, the actor Ryan Dorsey, and the two shared his custody, according to the media specialized in celebrities TMZ.

Glee's cast was marked by a series of dramas. A actor in the series, Mark Salling, died in 2018 while awaiting a judgment for possession of child pornography. And Canadian Cory Monteith died in July 2013 from an drug and alcohol overdose.