Missing Father of 3 Faked His Disappearance in Kayak Accident and Fled to Europe: Authorities

Mar. 15, 2025

Ina news conference on Friday, Nov. 8, Green Lake County Sheriff Mark Podoll provided an update following a 54-day search for Ryan Borgwardt.

Podoll said that on Aug. 12, around 5:32 p.m. local time, deputies initially responded to a missing persons call — and Borgwardt’s vehicle and trailer were later found parked in the area of Dodge Memorial Park, with the man’s last known location being Green Lake.

Around an hour after the alarm was first raised in August, authorities then found a capsized kayak in the western part of the lake in an area where the water is around 220 feet deep, the sheriff told reporters.

The following day, fishermen found Borgwardt’s fishing rod in the same lake, before his tackle box was also discovered, according to officials. Inside, the box contained a wallet, keys and a license belonging to Borgwardt — who last had contact with his wife on Aug. 11.

Ryan Borgwardt.Green Lake County Sheriff’s Office

Green Lake County Sheriff’s Office

Members of a volunteer search-and-recovery organization, Bruce’s Legacy, also ran a 28-day search for the missing man.

“That was something we didn’t expect,” the sheriff told reporters last week, adding that authorities ended up analyzing a laptop that the missing man’s wife had given them.

A stock photo of a kayak.Heath Korvola/Getty

Heath Korvola/Getty

Investigators then delved further and discovered that Borgwardt had reported his passport missing and obtained a replacement on May 22, according to WBAY.

Borgwardt also took photos of his passport, moved funds to a foreign bank, changed his email and communicated with a woman in Uzbekistan ahead of his vanishing, Podoll continued, telling reporters that he’d taken out a $375,000 life insurance policy in January and purchased airline cards.

Photos of the search area covered for missing kayaker Ryan Borgwardt.Green Lake County Sheriffs Office

Green Lake County Sheriffs Office

“I want to thank the family, I want to thank his wife. That is one strong lady,” the sheriff said at the news conference last week.

“Whenever we called on her, she always responded and she gave everything that she could for us," he said. “I cannot imagine what she’s going through and they’re going through.”

Of Borgwardt’s kids, Podoll added, “They thought that their dad was drowned. A day ago, they found out that he wasn’t.”

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The sheriff then delivered a message directly to the missing man.

“Ryan, if you are viewing this, I plead that you contact us or contact your family,” he said. “We understand that things can happen, but there’s a family that wants their daddy back.”

source: people.com