Overview

• Ryan Borgwardt, 45, pleaded no contest to misdemeanor obstruction in Green Lake County as the court imposed an 89‑day jail term above the 45‑day plea recommendation.
• He was ordered to repay $30,000 for search costs, which his attorney said has already been paid.
• Authorities say he staged a drowning at Green Lake in August 2024, triggering a weeks‑long, multi‑agency search using divers, sonar and underwater drones.
• Prosecutors outlined months of planning that included a new passport, a $375,000 life‑insurance policy, a vasectomy reversal, overseas money transfers and wiped devices.
• Investigators say he escaped by inflatable raft and e‑bike, traveled through Canada and Europe to Georgia to meet a woman from Uzbekistan, was contacted in November, returned in December and was later divorced.