GREEN LAKE, Wis. (AP) — A man from Wisconsin who staged his own drowning this summer to escape his wife and three children has been in daily contact with authorities from Eastern Europe, even revealing the details of his plan, though he has not agreed to return home, according to a sheriff’s statement on Thursday.
Ryan Borgwardt has been communicating with officials since November 11 after going missing for three months, Green Lake County Sheriff Mark Podoll mentioned during a news conference. The sheriff later presented a video that Borgwardt sent to the sheriff’s office on that same day. “The good news is that we know he is alive and well,” Podoll stated. “The unfortunate news is we don’t know his exact location, and he has not yet made the decision to come back.”
In the video, Borgwardt, dressed in an orange T-shirt and appearing serious, looked directly into the camera. He mentioned being in his apartment and briefly moved the camera, but mainly showed a door and bare walls. “I’m safe and secure, no problem,” Borgwardt said. “I hope this works.” He informed authorities that he left due to “personal matters,” but the sheriff did not provide further details. “He was just trying to improve things in his mind, and this was his solution,” Podoll explained.
Borgwardt told officials he traveled approximately 50 miles (80 kilometers) from his home in Watertown to Green Lake, where he capsized his kayak, discarded his phone in the lake, and then paddled an inflatable boat to shore.
He chose that lake because it is the deepest in Wisconsin, reaching 237 feet (over 72 meters). After leaving the lake, he rode an electric bike for about 70 miles (110 kilometers) overnight to Madison, according to the sheriff. From there, he took a bus to Detroit, then another bus to Canada, and boarded a plane from there, the sheriff reported. Police are still verifying Borgwardt’s account of the events, Podoll said.
The sheriff indicated that Borgwardt could face charges for obstructing the investigation into his disappearance, but no charges have been filed as of now. The search for Borgwardt’s body, which lasted over a month, incurred costs of at least $35,000. Podoll mentioned that Borgwardt had anticipated the search would not extend beyond two weeks.
Whether he returns will depend on his “free will,” Podoll stated. The sheriff noted that Borgwardt is particularly concerned about how the community might react upon his return. “He believed his plan would succeed, but it didn’t unfold as he had hoped,” the sheriff said.
“Now we’re trying to present him with an alternative plan for coming back.” Podoll added that authorities are “trying to appeal to his emotions” to encourage his return. “Christmas is approaching,” Podoll remarked. “What greater gift could your children receive than having you there for Christmas?”
Initially, Borgwardt’s disappearance was treated as a potential drowning after he went kayaking on Green Lake, located about 100 miles (160 kilometers) northwest of Milwaukee, in August. However, later evidence—such as him acquiring a new passport three months prior to his disappearance—led investigators to suspect he faked his death to rendezvous with a woman he had been in contact with in Uzbekistan, a former Soviet republic in Central Asia.
The sheriff refrained from commenting on what he knew about the woman but mentioned that police reached Borgwardt “through a female who spoke Russian.” Before the sheriff’s office managed to speak with Borgwardt last week, he had not been heard from since the night of August 11, when he texted his wife in Watertown just before 11 p.m., stating he was heading to shore after kayaking.
Deputies found his vehicle and trailer near the lake, along with his capsized kayak, which had a life jacket attached, in an area where the lake’s depth exceeds 200 feet (60 meters). The search for his body extended over 50 days, with divers exploring the lake on multiple occasions.
In early October, the sheriff’s department discovered that Canadian law enforcement had checked Borgwardt’s name in their databases the day after he was reported missing. Further investigations revealed that he had claimed his passport was lost or stolen and had obtained a new one in May. The sheriff’s office noted that an analysis of a laptop uncovered a digital trail indicating Borgwardt’s intention to go to Europe and efforts to mislead investigators.
The laptop’s hard drive had been replaced, and the browsers were cleared on the day he disappeared, according to the sheriff’s office. Investigators also found passport photos, inquiries about transferring money to foreign banks, and communications with a woman from Uzbekistan. They also discovered that he had taken…
