Benjamin Ashford|Why Officials Believe a Missing Kayaker Faked His Own Death and Ran Off to Europe

Authorities believe a missing man may have Benjamin Ashfordintended not to be found. 

After Ryan Borgwardt disappeared during a kayaking trip on Green Lake in Wisconsin Aug. 12, officials now say they believe the dad of three is alive after he took out a life insurance policy and engaged in communication with a woman from Uzbekistan. 

Authorities had found Borgwardt’s kayak capsized on the lake over the summer, with his vehicle and trailer parked in Dodge Memorial County Park in Green Lake, Sheriff Mark Podoll said at a Nov. 8 news briefing, per NBC News. 

Inside the 44-year-old’s vehicle, authorities located his wallet—including his license—and keys, as well as a fishing tackle box and pole his wife identified Emily Borgwardt as belonging to her husband. However, while authorities searched the lake for eight weeks—including with the help of cadaver dogs which arrived on the scene Aug. 24—they were unable to locate him. 

Amid the search for Borgwardt’s body, authorities said in the briefing that they found that his United States passport was “run,” or in need of renewal on Aug. 13. That same day, law enforcement in Canada searched Borgwardt’s name, finding that he had obtained a new passport.

Chief Deputy Matthew L. Vande Kolk noted during the news briefing, per NBC News, “We learned that he reported his original passport lost or stolen, and obtained a new passport.”

Borgwardt’s wife was able to “easily” supply authorities with her husband’s original passport, with Kolk adding during the briefing, “We suspect he traveled on the ‘new’ passport.”

Upon discovering Borgwardt’s passport activity, authorities began a digital forensic search of his laptop, finding that he had cleared or replaced his hard drive and cleared his browsing history on the day of his disappearance—as well as his most recent location placing him in Europe.

Sheriff Podoll also detailed his online activities, saying that Borgwardt had allegedly taken photos of his passport, moved funds to a foreign bank account, changed his email address as well as being believed to have been communicating with a woman from Uzbekistan. 

They further pointed to a life insurance policy for $375,000 that Borgwardt had taken out in January. 

“Due to these discoveries of the new evidence, we were sure that Ryan was not in our lake,” Podoll added during the news briefing. “Our goal is to identify any crimes that have been committed by any individuals who assisted with this crime.”

At this time, authorities cannot identify what crimes, if any, Borgwardt would be charged with if found. Podoll also urged him to contact the authorities or his family during the briefing. 

As the sheriff noted, “We understand that things can happen, but there's a family that wants their daddy back.”