PRINCETON, Wis. (WFRV) — More details have emerged following the initial court appearance of Ryan Borgwardt, a Green Lake County man who faked his death, fled the country, and later returned.
According to a criminal complaint obtained by Local 5 News, the Green Lake County Sheriff’s Office was notified on Aug. 11, 2024, shortly after 10:30 p.m., that Borgwardt was believed to have been kayaking on Green Lake just off Dodge Memorial Park.
Deputies recovered the overturned kayak with the life jacket still in place. Borgwardt is believed to have inflated a raft he had taken with him and returned to shore. While on the lake, Borgwardt reportedly threw his cell phone into the water. He also left a fishing pole and tackle box containing his identifying documents in the lake.
Authorities recovered the fishing pole, and the tackle box was found washed up on the shore.
After returning to shore, Borgwardt reportedly got on an electric bicycle he had stashed nearby, rode to a Greyhound bus stop, and took a bus to Toronto’s airport in Canada. From there, Borgwardt allegedly flew to Europe and later to Eastern Europe or Western Asia, where he took up residency.
The Green Lake County Sheriff’s Office initially investigated Borgwardt’s disappearance as a missing person case, believing he had drowned based on the evidence he had staged.
The criminal complaint states that Borgwardt had planned his actions carefully, choosing a day with easier weather conditions for the bike ride. After riding to the bus station, he boarded a Greyhound bus that took him from Milwaukee to Chicago, then Detroit. The bus was set to cross the border into Canada.
At customs, Borgwardt reportedly encountered difficulties when asked for a driver’s license, which he did not have. He presented his passport, but Canadian Border Patrol officials still requested his driver’s license. After questioning and explaining his plans, Borgwardt was eventually allowed to proceed.
At the airport, he bought a plane ticket to Paris using a Western Union card. On the flight, he checked news coverage of Green Lake and noted reports of a missing kayaker, believing his plan had succeeded.
After landing in Paris, Borgwardt boarded another flight to a country in Eastern Europe/Western Asia, where he passed through customs without issue. He emailed an adult female upon arrival, waited for her at the airport, and the two stayed in a hotel for several days.
Borgwardt took $5,500 in cash with him to Canada, which was all he brought for his escape. He told investigators he had extensively researched how to disappear, including cases of people who vanished for years and the conditions under which bodies in lakes do not resurface.
At some point, Borgwardt realized the Green Lake County Sheriff’s Office knew he was alive but wanted to prolong the investigation. He used a VPN to check news headlines periodically, disguising his location as Russia or other countries.
The complaint states that on Nov. 8, 2024, Borgwardt received an email from Chief Deputy Vande Kolk, which caused his ‘heart to drop.’ The email included a picture of the woman he had contacted, and he realized he had made a critical mistake. Borgwardt admitted to leaving his laptop behind to make his disappearance more believable.
Borgwardt admitted to staging his kayak, tackle box, fishing pole, and cell phone in the lake to mislead law enforcement and others into believing he had drowned.
He made his initial appearance in the Green Lake County Courthouse on Wednesday, where he was charged with obstructing an officer, a misdemeanor.
If convicted, Borgwardt faces up to $10,000 in fines and nine months in prison. The judge set a $500 signature bond.
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Borgwardt is scheduled to return to court on Jan. 13, 2024, for a status conference.
No additional details have been provided.
