A Wisconsin man who faked his own death and fled the country, leaving behind his wife and three children, is in police custody after turning himself in, authorities said on Wednesday.
Ryan Borgwardt “returned on his own”, roughly four months after his disappearance, Green Lake County Sheriff Mark Podoll told reporters at a news conference.
Mr Borgwardt, 45, vanished while on a solo fishing trip to Green Lake in August, abandoning his kayak and mobile phone in the lake, and leading authorities who thought he had drowned searching for his body.
Three months later, on 11 November, Sheriff Podoll said Mr Borgwardt began communicating with police who were “pulling at his heartstrings” to bring him home.
The sheriff said that Mr Borgwardt is in custody and awaiting a court appearance.
Sheriff Podoll said his office had recommended “a number” of charges, including obstruction.
His office spent over a month looking for Mr Borgwardt’s body after he went missing, costing the city at least $35,000 (£27,459), the Associated Press reported.
Sheriff Podoll suggested that Mr Borgwardt may be required to pay the city back and said that reimbursement “is part of the restitution we presented to the court”.
The sheriff’s office did not comment on where Mr Borgwardt had been, saying only that on 10 December Mr Borgwardt “arrived on US soil”.
Officials had previously found evidence that Mr Borgwardt used his passport after his disappearance and may have travelled to Europe.
When police first noticed Mr Borgwardt missing on 12 August, they believed that he had drowned and searched the lake for 54 days.
Green Lake County Sheriff’s OfficeThey first came into contact with Mr Borgwardt in November, after contacting a woman who speaks Russian who helped connect him to police, Sheriff Podoll said.
Mr Borgwardt then sent authorities a 24-second video shot selfie-style that showed him in an apartment with white walls.
“I’m safe, secure, no problem,” he said in the video.
During their near-daily exchanges, Mr Borgwardt allegedly revealed to police how he orchestrated his getaway.
Police say that after sinking his kayak and mobile phone in the lake, he paddled a small child-sized boat to shore where he had stashed an E-bike. He cycled overnight to Madison, Wisconsin, then boarded a bus to Detroit, Michigan, and got on a plane to Canada, where he travelled to an unknown location.
Sheriff Podoll said that Mr Borgwardt said he had faked his death because of “personal matters”.
The sheriff was audibly emotional as shared the update with reporters on Wednesday, saying: “We brought a dad back.”
Mr Borgwardt has not had any contact with his family since he left in August.
“We just briefly spoke to them,” Sheriff Podoll said on Wednesday. “I can only imagine how they feel.”
