Father Feared Drowned After Discovery of Capsized Kayak Now Believed to Have Fled to Europe: Police

Ryan Borgwardt was reported missing on Aug. 12 in Wisconsin, but after a 54-day long search, investigators believe he's fled to Europe.

A kayaker and father of three is believed to have faked his disappearance after going missing from a Wisconsin lake.

According to Green Lake County Police, Ryan Borgwardt is suspected to have fled to "someplace in Europe" after going missing from Green Lake on August 12. While his vehicle and trailer were later located in the area of Dodge Memorial Park, Borgwardt was nowhere to be found, and reported missing shortly after.

In a news conference Friday, Green Lake County Sheriff Mark Podoll shared an update following a 54-day search for Borgwardt.

Podoll said that on Aug. 12, around 5:32 p.m. local time, deputies initially responded to a missing persons call, and discovered Borgwardt's vehicle and trailer. Around an hour after the alarm was first raised, authorities then found a capsized kayak in the western part of the lake in an area where the water is around 220 feet deep, the sheriff told reporters.

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The following day, fishermen found Borgwardt's fishing rod in the same lake, before his tackle box was also discovered, according to officials. Inside the tackle box were a wallet, keys and license belonging to Borgwardt.

During the news conference, the sheriff explained that on Aug. 24, a team of divers and search dogs were brought in to help look for Borgwardt, who last had contact with his wife and children on Aug. 11, according to local TV station WBAY, and several area outlets.

Members of a volunteer search-and-recovery organization, Bruce's Legacy, also ran a 28-day search for the missing man, but turned up empty.

Things took a turn on Oct. 7 when Sheriff Podoll said the search had to "go a different direction" after they discovered that Borgwardt's name had been checked by Canadian law enforcement on Aug. 13, the day after he was reported missing, per WBAY.

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"That was something we didn't expect," the sheriff told reporters during last week's news conference, adding that Bogwardt's laptop -- which was provided to authorities by his wife -- had also been analyzed.

Investigators then delved further and discovered that Borgwardt allegedly reported his passport missing and obtained a replacement on May 22, according to WBAY.

Authorities now believe that Borgwardt is "someplace in Europe," with Podoll sharing that their investigation lead to the discovery that Borgwardt replaced his computer hard drive, and cleared its browser on the day of his disappearance.

Additional information gleamed from Borgwardt's laptop also allegedly showed that he took photos of his passport, moved funds to a foreign bank, changed his email and communicated with a woman in Uzbekistan ahead of his disappearance. He also took out a $375,000 life insurance policy in January, and purchased airline cards, Podoll told reporters.

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"Due to these discoveries of the new evidence, we were sure that Ryan was not in our lake," Podoll said, while thanking those involved in the search.

"I want to thank the family, I want to thank his wife. That is one strong lady," the sheriff said at the news conference last week. "Whenever we called on her, she always responded and she gave everything that she could for us. I cannot imagine what she’s going through and they're going through."

Of Borgwardt's kids, Podoll added, "They thought that their dad was drowned. A day ago, they found out that he wasn't."

The sheriff also had a message for Borgwardt, telling the missing man: "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."