MADISON, Wis.—A Wisconsin man apparently faked his own drowning this summer so he could abandon his family and flee to eastern Europe, investigators say.
Green Lake County Sheriff Mark Podoll said in a news release Friday that the Dodge County Sheriff’s Office informed his agency on Aug. 12 that Ryan Borgwardt of Watertown had gone missing after he went kayaking on Green Lake. Borgwardt’s wife said that he texted her at 10:49 p.m. on Aug. 11 saying he was heading to shore.
Deputies located Borgwardt’s vehicle and trailer near the lake. They also found his overturned kayak with a life jacket attached to it on the lake, in an area where the waters run more than 200 feet deep. An angler later discovered Borgwardt’s fishing rod….