Ryan Borgwardt likely wouldn’t face significant jail time after staging death, experts say

GREEN LAKE, Wis. — Ryan Borgwardt, a kayaker from Wisconsin accused of faking his own death and fleeing the country, might not face significant jail time if he returns home, experts say.

Borgwardt was initially reported missing in August after kayaking on Green Lake, a natural inland lake about 100 miles northwest of Milwaukee. But following a monthslong investigation, authorities revealed earlier this month that Borgwardt had staged his disappearance before possibly fleeing to Europe.

Prior to his disappearance, authorities said Borgwardt took out a life insurance policy and communicated with a woman from Uzbekistan. Last week, authorities announced that they had made contact with Borgwardt — who said he has no intention of returning home or giving up his whereabouts.

Clinical associate professor of law at University of Wisconsin Law School John Gross said if Borgwardt returns home, he would likely be charged with a Class A misdemeanor for obstruction, but it’s not certain whether he could be charged with a Class I felony for insurance fraud.

“The definition of obstruction in this case is when you give false information to an officer or you knowingly place physical evidence with the intent to mislead an officer, so when he dumps his kayak and leaves his wallet, that’s knowingly planting evidence,” Gross said.

Class A misdemeanors in Wisconsin can result in a fine up to $10,000 or a maximum of nine months in prison, or both. Insurance fraud is determined to be a Class I felony if the claim is more than $2,500, and the Green Lake County Sheriff’s Office said Borgwardt took out a $375,000 life insurance policy with his immediate family as beneficiaries.

The lowest-level felony in Wisconsin, a Class I felony, can carry a prison sentence up to three-and-a-half years. But Gross said even that would be cut in half because the family never tried to claim the policy.

“What could make this felony applicable to him is that the insurance fraud statute speaks about presenting fraudulent claim or causing a fraudulent claim to be presented, and if you fake your own death, then you are causing a false claim to be presented,” Gross added. “But we’re possibly talking about a year-and-a-half as a maximum penalty.”

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What happened to Ryan Borgwardt?

Borgwardt, a 45-year-old married father of three, was originally reported missing on Aug. 12 when he failed to return from kayaking on Green Lake a day earlier. An extensive search involving underwater drones, towable submersible sonar, divers and three K-9 cadaver teams did not turn up Borgwardt’s body after 54 days.

But a shift in the investigation found that his name had been checked by Canadian law enforcement on Aug. 13 and showed he had a second passport after reporting his first passport as lost. Following a forensic analysis of his laptop, authorities also discovered that Borgwardt was in communication with a woman from Uzbekistan, inquired about moving funds to foreign banks and changed email addresses associated with financial accounts.

Authorities added that in January, Borgwardt took out a $375,000 life insurance policy and purchased an airline gift card.

During a news conference on Thursday, Green Lake County Sheriff Mark Podoll revealed authorities have been in daily contact with Borgwardt since Nov. 11 and first reached him via a “woman speaking Russian.” Borgwardt confirmed law enforcement’s findings after detailing his plan, which included:

• Stashing an eBike near the boat launch.

• Paddling a kayak and a child-sized inflatable boat out into the lake.

• Overturning the kayak and dumping his phone in the lake.

• Paddling the inflatable boat to shore and then riding the eBike through the night to Madison.

• Boarding a bus in Madison, going to Detroit and then heading to the Canadian border.

• Continuing on the bus to the airport and getting on a plane.

Ryan Borgwardt believed to be in Eastern Europe

Although Borgwardt is believed to be somewhere in Eastern Europe, authorities still do not know his exact whereabouts and haven't been able to persuade him to return home. The U.S. does not have an extradition treaty with Uzbekistan or Russia.

U.S. Attorney’s Office Public Information Officer Kenneth Gales said the department can't comment "outside of public findings on any specific matter," but revealed there is no specific federal offense for someone faking their death and fleeing the country.

Any federal offense would depend on the details of a case, such as a person committing mail fraud relating to insurance benefits, lying to obtain a fraudulent federal identification document or lying to immigration officials, according to Gales.

Gross also noted that there could be tax implications if the Internal Revenue Service views this case as attempted fraud. It’s not clear whether Borgwardt transferred funds to foreign banks.

“We’re assuming he’s not coming back, but what if he returns in time for tax season and pays his taxes?” Gross said. “I know people are looking at this as such a huge crime, but you can walk off the grid, go live in a cabin or join a monastery without telling anyone and technically that’s not a crime.”

In addition to potential obstruction charges, Podoll said the Green Lake County Sheriff’s Office would likely be seeking restitution between $35,000 and $40,000 for the search effort. Those costs do not include any expenses incurred by volunteers such as Bruce’s Legacy — a nonprofit search-and-rescue organization — and the expert divers, according to Podoll.

Contributing: Thao Nguyen and Fernando Cervantes Jr., USA TODAY

Contact Justin Marville at [email protected].

This article originally appeared on Fond du Lac Reporter: Ryan Borgwardt: Could Wisconsin man who faked death face jail time?