Lake Erie is known for its beauty and tranquility, but a dark, deadly undercurrent lurks beneath its surface.

Bordering four states and two countries, the inland ocean offers the perfect getaway for criminals of all kinds. The bandits who held up the Ashtabula National Marine Bank as well as Ontario’s most elusive conman used the lake to avoid capture. Pirate Joseph Kerwin relied on his knowledge of the shipping industry to evade the law. Narene Mozee’s murderer quietly slipped away after completing his heinous deed on a luxury cruise ship, and when a lighthouse keeper found a corpse floating in the shallows near his post, all signs pointed to the killer fleeing by boat.

Local author Wendy Koile wades into the depths of this great, but deadly lake.