Wisconsin Father Who Allegedly Faked Kayak Accident Was in Contact with Woman Overseas: Police
Ryan Borgwardt, who was reported missing in August, is now believed to be alive "someplace in Europe"
A Wisconsin father who police believe staged his own disappearance was in contact with a woman from Uzbekistan and took out a life insurance policy before vanishing.
Ryan Borgwardt has not been seen by his family or authorities since August, when deputies responded to a missing persons call and found his vehicle and trailer in Green Lake County, Wisc., county Sheriff Mark Podoll said in a press conference aired by WFRV.
When authorities searched Green Lake, Podoll told reporters, a capsized kayak was found. The next day, searchers found Borgwardt’s fishing rod and tackle box in the lake. Inside the box was the missing man’s license.
Borgwardt, a married father of three, according to WBAY, was not located, leading to a 54-day search that involved search dogs and diving teams, Podoll said.
Related: Missing Father of 3 Faked His Disappearance in Kayak Accident and Fled to Europe: Authorities
But the search went in another direction on Oct. 7, after Podoll said police had learned that Borgwardt’s name had been checked by Canadian authorities a day after he was reported missing.
"That was something we didn't expect," Podoll said.
The sheriff said a search of Borgwardt’s laptop led authorities to discover that he had replaced his hard drive and deleted his internet browser history the day he vanished. Authorities later found that Borgwardt had taken photos of his passport, moved funds to a foreign bank account, changed his email and communicated with a woman in Uzbekistan.
Podoll added that months before disappearing, Borgwardt had taken out a $375,000 life insurance policy.
"Due to these discoveries of the new evidence, we were sure that Ryan was not in our lake," Podoll said.
Authorities now believe that the missing father is "someplace in Europe."
Podoll thanked everyone who assisted with the lake searches, which included a volunteer search-and-recovery organization called Bruce's Legacy, which conducted its own nearly month-long search.
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“They thought that their dad was drowned,” Podoll said of Borgwardt’s children. “A day ago, they found out that he wasn’t.”
The sheriff also thanked Borgwardt’s wife, calling her “one strong lady."
“Ryan, if you are viewing this, I plead that you contact us or contact your family," the sheriff said. "We understand that things can happen, but there’s a family that wants their daddy back.”
