Wisconsin’s husband and father, who said the authorities faked their own death in a lake and fled the country, was sentenced to 89 days in jail, the same amount of days that was missing, a judge ruled.
Ryan Borgwardt, 45, appeared in the Court on Tuesday to move any minor crime contest to obstruct an officer and receive his sentence.
Although the prosecution and defense recommended 45 days in jail, the judge sentenced Borgwardt 89 days, citing the number of days that deception lasted. The maximum sentence for the position is nine months in jail.
“I deeply regret the actions I did that night and all the pain I caused to my family and friends,” Borgwardt said in court.
“He is taking responsibility for his actions,” added defense lawyer Erik Johnson.

A reserve photo of Ryan Borgwardt.
Green Lake County Sheriff’s Office
Borgwardt was accused of intentionally deceiving the authorities to believe that he drowned in August 2024.
Borgwardt “investigated and studied how to disappear successfully” and believed that “Green Lake’s great depth would mean that a body would not arise,” said the Prosecutor’s Office in the Court on Tuesday. Borgwardt later traveled to Georgia’s country and created a life with a woman who met online, prosecutors said.

A photo without Date of Ryan Borgwardt, which the authorities believe he pretended their own death in a Lake Wisconsin and fled to Europe.
Green Lake County Sheriff’s Office
The disappearance began on August 11, when Borgwardt sent a text message to his wife who was turning his kayak in Green Lake and went to the shore soon, but never came home, authorities said.
The teams found the kayak overturning and Borgwardt’s life, the authorities said, and the authorities and volunteers spent weeks looking for the lake.

Green Lake County authorities and volunteers are looking for missing Kayaker Ryan Borgwardt.
Wbay
In October, the investigators discovered that Borgwardt’s name had been reviewed by the police in Canada two days after the authorities disappeared. They also learned that Borgwardt had been communicating with a woman from Uzbekistan, authorities said.
Borgwardt’s other suspicious behavior included: clearing his browse the day he disappeared, asking about moving from funds to foreign banks, obtaining a new passport and obtaining a new life insurance policy, authorities said.
The police contacted Borgwardt in November. Wisconsin’s father returned to the United States in December and was accused.