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WI kayaker alive in Europe, authorities confirm
Authorities say a kayaker faked his own death and today they announced that he is alive and in eastern Europe after he abandoned his wife and children.
GREEN LAKE COUNTY, Wis. (FOX 9) - Wisconsin authorities say a man who faked his own death over the summer, abandoning his wife and children, is alive in Eastern Europe.
At a press conference Thursday, the Green Lake County Sheriff's Office said they're in touch with him, but they do not know where he is.
News conference updates
Authorities say they spoke with Ryan Borgwardt, the man accused of faking his own death, and revealed a video of him that Borgwardt sent to the sheriff's office.
The video shows Borgwardt in a room speaking to the camera. He did not appear to be in any distress, and authorities say they do not believe he is in danger.
"The great news is he's still alive," said Green Lake County Sheriff Mark Podell. "The bad news is we don't know exactly where he is, and he has not yet decided to return home."
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WI sheriff: Kayaker who faked death is alive [RAW]
The Green Lake County Sheriff's Office held a news conference on a kayaker suspected of faking own death.
Authorities say they made contact with him through a woman who spoke Russian.
Podell says he wants restitution for the resources they spent looking for Borgwardt, which is estimated to be more than $40,000.
The sheriff added that no warrants have yet been issued for Borgwardt, and that none will be needed if he decides to return to his family.
The sheriff ended the news conference by pointing out that Christmas is coming up and there would be no better gift to his children than for him to return home.
READ MORE: Missing Wisconsin kayaker might have faked death, fled country: Authorities
How did this happen?
Photo of Ryan Borgwardt, who authorities believe faked his own death. (Supplied)
Authorities say that Borgwardt overturned his kayak and dropped his phone into the lake.
He then paddled a flotation device to shore and rode an E-bike that was stashed nearby.
Investigators believe he rode "through the night" to Madison, then caught a bus to Detroit, and then crossed the border into Canada, where he boarded a plane.
His exact whereabouts are still not known, according to authorities.
Background
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Missing WI kayaker could now be in Europe
A missing kayaker in Wisconsin, Ryan Borgwardt, allegedly swapped out his computer's hard drive and took out a $300K life insurance policy before he disappeared.
When Borgwardt didn't return home from a fishing trip on Green Lake in Wisconsin in early August, local authorities believed he had drowned. But now they believe he is alive and well, instead of at the bottom of the lake.
Investigators discovered Borgwardt had recently transferred money to a foreign bank account, replaced the hard drive on his computer and communicated with a woman in Uzbekistan.
He had also gotten a new passport, which was checked by Canadian authorities the day after he was reported missing, and had taken out a $375,000 life insurance policy earlier in the year, leading investigators to believe Borgwardt faked his death and fled the country.
Investigators believe Borgwardt is in Eastern Europe, but they aren't sure where.
They say they won't stop looking for him until he is found.
"This one tops my 18-and-a-half-years of being sheriff. It didn't turn out the way we thought it was going to turn out. It turned out completely different," Green Lake County Sheriff Mark Podell told FOX 9.