Kayaker who faked death and fled US taken into custody in Wisconsin: Officials

(GREEN LAKE, Wis.) — Ryan Borgwardt, the husband and father who authorities said faked his own death and fled the country, has returned to the U.S. willingly and is now in custody in Wisconsin, the Green Lake County Sheriff’s Office announced on Wednesday.

Borgwardt notified authorities he was returning and he landed in the U.S. on Tuesday, Sheriff Mark Podoll said at a news conference, but the sheriff did not reveal from where he flew.

Podoll said authorities are still putting together where Borgwardt was and who he was with since he vanished, but said he’s “cooperated” with law enforcement.

Asked what compelled Borgwardt to come back, Podoll said, “His family, I guess.”

Podoll did not say if Borgwardt has had contact with his wife and children.

Borgwardt is awaiting a court appearance on charges including obstruction, Podoll said. 

The case began on Aug. 11, when Borgwardt texted his wife that he was turning his kayak around on Green Lake and heading to shore soon, Podoll said.

But the dad of three never came home.

Responders found Borgwardt’s overturned kayak and life jacket in the lake and believed he drowned, officials said.

Crews scoured the lake for weeks using divers, drones, sonar and cadaver K-9s, but never found him, officials said.

In October, investigators discovered Borgwardt’s name had been checked by law enforcement in Canada two days after he vanished on the lake, the sheriff said.

Authorities also learned Borgwardt had been communicating with a woman from Uzbekistan, the sheriff said.

Borgwardt’s other suspicious behavior included: clearing his browsers the day he disappeared, inquiring about moving funds to foreign banks, obtaining a new passport and getting a new life insurance policy, the sheriff said.

Authorities determined Borgwardt was alive out of the country, but didn’t know exactly where he was located. Authorities made contact with a woman who speaks Russian, and on Nov. 11, they reached Borgwardt through that woman, authorities said.

Borgwardt told police he was safe but didn’t reveal his location, the sheriff said.

Podoll said Borgwardt did reveal to them how he faked his death.

“He stashed an e-bike near the boat launch. He paddled his kayak in a child-sized floating boat out into the lake. He overturned the kayak and dumped his phone in the lake,” the sheriff said. “He paddled the inflatable boat to shore and got on his e-bike and rode through the night to Madison, [Wisconsin]. In Madison, he boarded a bus and went to Detroit, and then the Canadian border. He continued on the bus to an airport and got on a plane.”

One of the reasons Borgwardt picked Green Lake is because it’s one of the deepest lakes in the state, Podoll said.