A Massillon man was arrested after authorities say he crashed a boat near Crystal Beach on Indian Lake, abandoned injured passengers, and later stole a firefighter’s personal vehicle.
The incident began just after midnight on Sunday, Aug. 24, when multiple agencies responded to reports of a boat traveling at high speed before crashing near Crystal Beach. The Indian Joint Fire District located several injured passengers, who were taken to Fox Island for treatment. The boat’s operator fled the scene.
Around 1 a.m., officers found the wrecked boat docked near Willow Island, but its operator was gone. During the response, IJFD personnel discovered one of their personal vehicles had been stolen from the dock. With help from OnStar, the vehicle was disabled and recovered undamaged on the west side of the lake.
The next day, investigators interviewed passengers, who identified the operator as Tyler Cosgrove, 26, of Massillon. They told officers they had met Cosgrove earlier that evening at a local restaurant. Surveillance footage from nearby businesses also showed Cosgrove taking the firefighter’s vehicle.
On Aug. 31, Cosgrove returned to Indian Lake to retrieve his wrecked boat from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources. He was taken into custody and booked into the Logan County Jail on charges of grand theft and other counts connected to the crash.
ODNR led the crash investigation, while the Russells Point Police Department handled the vehicle theft case. Other responding agencies included the Logan County Sheriff’s Office, Lakeview Fire Department, Huntsville EMS, and IJFD.
