Former WWE star Shad Gaspard missing after being caught in ocean current

Source: USA Today

May 20, 2020 at 07:42

Rescue crews are searching for former WWE wrestler Shad Gaspard, who went missing Sunday while swimming near Venice Beach, California.

The Los Angeles Police Department reports Gaspard was last seen by a lifeguard about 50 yards from shore as a wave "crashed over (him) and he was swept out to sea."

A lifeguard with the L.A. County Fire Department tells CNN that two swimmers were caught in a rip current and a young boy was rescued. That lines up with an official statement from Gaspard's family that was posted on social media on Tuesday afternoon which read, in part: "We would like to express our gratitude to the first responders who rescued Aryeh and to the lifeguards, coast guard, divers, fire and police departments for their efforts to help find our beloved Shad."

Aryeh is his 10-year-old son.

Official statement from Shad Gaspard’s family. Keep them in your thoughts today.? pic.twitter.com/5vYTYDReuP
— Scott Fishman (@smFISHMAN) May 19, 2020

Gaspard, 39, is best known as part of the WWE duo Cryme Tyme, along with his partner JTG. He left WWE in 2010 to pursue an acting career, appearing in films such as "Think Like a Man Too," as well as appearing in the BET television series "The Game."