Take Carlee Russell on the line, STAT! A Wisconsin father who has been missing for more than 90 days may have pretended to be missing. That’s the conclusion local authorities in Green Lake County have come to after searching Ryan Borgwardt in 54 days.
Initial details about “Missing Person”
August 11 was the last time Ryan’s wife contacted him. The couple is said to share three children each EVERYBODY. At 5:32 p.m. the next day, the wife called the Green Lake County Sheriff’s Office to report her husband missing.
Authorities later recovered his vehicle and trailer near Dodge Memorial Park. They later found an overturned kayak in the western area of Green Lake, which is believed to be about 220 feet deep. The next day, fishermen on the lake found Ryan Borgwardt’s fishing rod. Officials also recovered a box containing the missing father’s wallet, keys and driver’s license.
Police also relied on experienced divers and search dogs to aid their efforts. Meanwhile, a volunteer organization called Bruce’s Legacy also organized and led a 28-day search for Ryan Borgwardt.
Investigation evidence points to a hoax by the missing father
By October 7, Police Chief Mark Podoll began asking questions about the father’s disappearance. He and his team met that same day and chose “a different direction.”
That was the first red flag after the disappearance Canadian law enforcement checked Ryan’s passport on August 13, one day after his wife reported him missing. The second red flag is that Ryan reported his passport lost several months earlier, on May 22, 2024, and had it replaced. In addition, he also has his passport photo.
However, that’s not all. Ryan also transferred money to a foreign bank, bought a $375,000 life insurance policy in January, bought an airline pass, changed his email address and contacted a woman in Uzbekistan.
On the day he “disappeared,” the father of three deleted the browser on his laptop. He also replaced the device’s hard drive. With all these discoveries, police now believe that the “missing father” actually staged his disappearance and fled to Europe. However, at this time, the cause of such a complicated escape is still unclear.
“Thanks to the discoveries of this new evidence, we are certain that Ryan is not in our lake,” Sheriff Podoll said at a press conference on November 8. Furthermore, the Wisconsin sheriff thanked the Wisconsin man’s wife and children before pleading with Ryan to reach out.
“Ryan, if you are watching this, I implore you to contact us or contact your family,” the sheriff said. “We understand that things can happen but there is a family that wants their father back.”
If discovered, it’s unclear whether Ryan would face any legal consequences like Carlee Russell did after orchestrating her kidnapping in July 2023.
RELATED: Carlee Russell broke her silence one year after staging a fake kidnapping in Alabama
What do you think Roomies?
