‘I really don’t think there’s anything that was a lie’: What the Wisconsin kayaker who faked his own drowning and fled the country told investigators

In August 2024, Ryan Borgwardt disappeared after kayaking in a Wisconsin lake, leading to a search that revealed he had traveled to Georgia to pursue a relationship with a woman he met online. After pleading no contest to obstructing law enforcement, he was sentenced to 89 days in jail and ordered to pay $30,000 in restitution, admitting he created a chaotic situation by not revealing his whereabouts.

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