Leonard Lake

Leonard Lake (October 29, 1945 - June 6, 1985) was a serial killer along with Charles Ng who filmed themselves raping, torturing and murdering between 11 to 25 people between 1983 and 1985.

Early Life

Lake was born to San Francisco. When he was at the of six his parents separated, where he and siblings had to live with there grandmother. He photographed his sister nude, which his grandmother encouraged. Leonard completely became obsessed with pornography. He extorted sexual favors towards his sister. He collected mice and later killed some by dissolving them in chemicals.

Vietnam War service

Lake enlisted in the United States Marine Corps and served two tours of duty in Vietnam. He served as a radar technician. Later, medically discharged when he was diagnosed with schizoid personality disorder.

Later life

Lake later lived in San Jose and enrolled at university, but later dropped out. He became a hippie and lived on a commune north of Ukiah. He married his first wife but divorced him later, upon discovering that he was starring in pornographic films depicting bondage. Leonard met Claralyn Balazs who he nicknamed Cricket at a renaissance fair where he used a goat with a unicorn horn on it. Soon they got married. Cricket would later star in Lake's pornographic films. Lake met another marine named Charles Ng through a magazine advertisement he placed. Ng would later live with Lake. Ng was stealing weapons from a base in Hawaii. The federal authorities raided Lake's house for stashes of weapons and explosives. Lake was released on $6000 bond and jumped bail. Charles who other hand returned to military custody and pleaded guilty for theft and desertion charges. Ng served 18 months at Fort Leavenworth where he was later paroled and dishonorably discharged from service.

Murders

Lake soon reunited with Ng. After he rented a cabin in Wilseyville, Calaveras County. Next to the cabin, Lake had constructed a bunker or dungeon as described in his journal. Over a year Lake and Ng began series of kidnappings, rapes, tortures and murders called Operation Miranda, named after the character Miranda from John Fowles' novel The Collector. Though, Lake before reuniting with Ng, had murdered his brother Donald and Charles Gunnar.