Ryan Borgwardt, a Wisconsin kayaker, reportedly faked his own death and fled to eastern Europe, investigators say. Green Lake County Sheriff Mark Podoll reported that Ryan Borgwardt went missing on August 11, 2024, after he went kayaking on Green Lake. Borgwardt was believed to have died after investigators searched the lake for 54 days, but failed to locate his body.
However, an investigation determined that Borgwardt took out a $375,000 life insurance policy before he went missing, faked his own death, and fled to eastern Europe.
"As far as we know, he's someplace in Eastern Europe," Green Lake County sheriff Mark Podoll told ABC News. Investigators are "looking into what charges could be filed," Podoll said, adding, "that's a work in progress."
Ryan Borgwardt reportedly faked his own death, leaving his wife and children
The Green Lake County sheriff Mark Podoll and his team began searching for Borgwardt on August 12, the day after he was reportedly missing. Borgwardt’s vehicle and trailer were located near the lake. The police found his overturned kayak with a life jacket attached to it on the lake. Later, they found his fishing rod and tackle box.
Investigators speculated that Borgwardt had drowned, and they scoured the lake using divers, drones, sonar, and cadaver K-9s, officials said.
"The search continued for about 54 days, with no sign of Ryan," Podoll said during a news conference on Friday. "Nearly daily drone searches were completed. And Bruce's Legacy [a volunteer search organization] methodically searched approximately 1,500 acres.... Keith Cormican, [who leads] Bruce's Legacy, sifted through hours and hours of sonar data and images."
Bruce’s Legacy, a nonprofit organization focused on recovering drowning victims, searched about 1,500 acres—often in depths exceeding 100 feet of water—and scoured hours of sonar data and images, yet their efforts yielded no results.
The case took turn in early October, when the investigators learned that Canadian law enforcement authorities had run Borgwardt’s name through their databases a day after he went reportedly missing. Further investigation revealed that Borgwardt had obtained a new passport in May, and a forensic analysis of the hard drive of his laptop revealed further evidence of his careful planning.
Borgwardt had carefully replaced the hard drive of his laptop and cleared his browsers on the day he disappeared, Podoll said in the news release. Investigators further found passport photos, his attempt to transfer funds to an overseas bank account, and a new email address created by Borgwardt to communicate with a woman from Uzbekistan. Additionally, they discovered that Borgwardt also took out a $375,000 life insurance policy in January. Authorities hope to seek restitution for search expenses, the sheriff's office said.
"He wasted a lot of my time, and it cost me a lot of money," Keith Cormican of Bruce's Legacy said. "I was there when the sheriff broke the news to the whole family. And it was pretty, pretty heart-wrenching to see," Cormican told ABC News. "I feel horrible for the family. They're the ones that are going to really struggle."
The sheriff’s office said in an email to CNN,
"Officials are working to identify if any crimes were committed and if anyone helped Borgwardt. No charges have been filed against Borgwardt."
According to Podoll, the FBI, along with the Department of Homeland Security and the Wisconsin Department of Criminal Investigations, are now actively involved in the case.
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Borgwardt is married and shares three kids with his wife. During the press conference, Podoll urged,
"Ryan, if you are viewing this, I plead that you contact us or contact your family. We understand that things can happen, but there’s a family that wants their daddy back."
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