Officials have revealed a shocking new twist in Malcolm-Jamal Warner’s death by drowning on Sunday while he was vacationing in Costa Rica.

Initially, Elberth León, the head of the Tourist Police for the country’s Atlantic region, claimed the actor’s 8-year-old daughter was in the ocean with him and was successfully rescued.

However, Costa Rica’s Judicial Investigation Agency (OIJ) has since clarified that the girl was on the beach’s shore when her dad entered the water with a friend, got “caught by a high current” and drowned.

“Mr. Warner was playing with his daughter at the seashore at one point. He then left her out of the water, and he and a friend of his entered the sea,” a rep for the OIJ told People in a statement, which was translated from Spanish, on Thursday.

Officials have revealed a shocking new twist in Malcolm-Jamal Warner’s death by drowning on Sunday while he was vacationing in Costa Rica.AFP via Getty Images

Initially, Elberth León, the head of the Tourist Police for the country’s Atlantic region, claimed the actor’s 8-year-old daughter was in the ocean with him and was successfully rescued.Tim Wright / MEGA

“It was at that moment that they were swept away by the current, and the friend managed to get out,” the statement continued.

“However, Mr. Warner was unable to get out and was pulled out by several people on the beach. He received care from Red Cross officials but was pronounced dead at the scene.”

The man who pulled Warner out of the water, a doctor, recounted the harrowing scene to Us Weekly.

Like Warner, he was on vacation, enjoying the day in the town of Playa Grande.

However, Costa Rica’s Judicial Investigation Agency (OIJ) has since clarified that the girl was on the beach’s shore when her dad entered the water with a friend, got “caught by a high current” and drowned.Getty Images for SCAD aTVfest 2020

“Mr. Warner was playing with his daughter at the seashore at one point. He then left her out of the water, and he and a friend of his entered the sea,” a rep for the OIJ said a statement, which was translated from Spanish, on Thursday.MediaPunch/INSTARimages

According to the doctor, there were “very few people on the beach” that day, which could have been because the “sea was rough.”

When he heard a group of people screaming and calling for help, he quickly “ran to the area and entered the sea with [his] surfboard, heading into the rip current toward the person being pointed at by some beachgoers.”

After a few minutes, the doctor said he “saw a shadow” and immediately “dove down and pulled the person out.”

When the doctor finally reached the beach with Warner, he saw another man lying on the sand, struggling to breathe.


“It was at that moment that they were swept away by the current, and the friend managed to get out,” the statement continued.Getty Images

“However, Mr. Warner was unable to get out and was pulled out by several people on the beach. He received care from Red Cross officials but was pronounced dead at the scene,” the statement concluded.Danny Moloshok/Invision/AP

“[He was] just someone who tried to help during the emergency without any rescue equipment,” the doctor explained, adding that “immediately, [first responders] began providing first aid to Malcolm, but he had no vital signs.”

The medical professional said two tourists who identified themselves as doctors “ran over to help.” A few minutes later, Costa Rican Red Cross personnel arrived. They used specialized equipment on the “Cosby Show” star, including a defibrillator, but he did not respond.

Warner was pronounced dead at the scene at the age of 54 due to “asphyxiation by submersion.”

The other man was transported to the local medical clinic in critical condition but has since been released.