Overview

• Case documents show he texted his wife that he had "snuck out" to watch the northern lights, said he loved her, and wrote he was heading back to shore just before 11 p.m.
• By morning there was no reply, his wife reported him missing, and an overturned kayak with his life jacket prompted a multiweek search estimated at more than $50,000.
• Investigators later determined he capsized the kayak to fake an accident, paddled ashore in a small inflatable, rode an e-bike overnight to Madison, took buses toward Canada, and flew from Toronto to Europe.
• Records detail months of planning that included a new bank account, attempts to move money overseas, wiped devices, a Canadian passport check, and a $375,000 life insurance policy.
• He returned in December 2024, later pleaded no contest to obstructing an officer, received 89 days in jail plus $30,000 restitution in August 2025, and his wife finalized a divorce in May.