Judge matched the jail term to the 89 days authorities spent searching after an August 2024 hoax.
GREEN LAKE, Wis. — Ryan Borgwardt, the Watertown father whose staged drowning on Green Lake set off a large search and an international manhunt, is out of custody after completing an 89-day county jail sentence, jail officials confirmed.
The release marks the latest turn in a case that stretched from a lakeside rescue call to a courtroom lecture on public resources. Borgwardt, 45, pleaded no contest to obstructing an officer and was ordered to pay $30,000 in restitution after prosecutors detailed how responders scoured the water for weeks. The judge opted for 89 days behind bars, mirroring the length of time authorities said they were misled. The closure leaves behind a financial tab and a thick case file that recounts dozens of daily water searches before investigators learned the kayaker had quietly left the country.
The incident began in early August 2024 when an overturned kayak and a life jacket were found drifting on Green Lake. Deputies, conservation wardens and volunteer divers launched at dawn and worked into the evening. Crews used sonar, drones and shoreline teams to grid the basin. With no recovery after days on the water, detectives expanded their review to digital traces and cross-border checks. By October, records indicated Borgwardt had been stopped by law enforcement in Canada and later traveled on to Europe. Investigators determined he settled in the nation of Georgia while friends in Wisconsin held vigils and waited for word from the lake.
Court proceedings later documented planning that prosecutors said preceded the hoax, including moving funds, obtaining a passport and communicating with a woman overseas. In December 2024, after U.S. investigators contacted him, Borgwardt returned to Wisconsin and was arrested. At his sentencing this year, he apologized in open court. “I deeply regret the actions that I did that night and the pain I caused my family and friends,” he said. Prosecutors cited at least $50,000 in public costs for the 58-day search phase; a formal, final tally has not been released. The restitution order directs $30,000 to the sheriff’s office and the Department of Natural Resources.
Judge Mark Slate said the sentence was meant to send a message about the use of public safety resources. Prosecutors had asked for a shorter jail term, but Slate cited the length of the deception and the response it triggered. The charge—obstructing an officer—carried county time rather than state prison. Jail logs show Borgwardt completed his term and was listed as out of custody Dec. 2. Authorities say there are no additional criminal counts pending in Green Lake County tied to the hoax; any remaining financial recovery would be handled through restitution or separate civil avenues.
Neighbors around the lake remembered the search boats idling off points and sand bars in late summer 2024. “We saw the lights out every night for weeks,” said a homeowner who lives near the county park launch. A volunteer diver described long, early sweeps. “You go out to bring someone home for their family,” the diver said, “and it changes you when it turns out to be staged.” The sheriff’s office declined further comment on Borgwardt’s personal plans after release, saying only that he served the sentence imposed and left custody under standard procedures.
As of Wednesday, officials report the criminal case closed and no hearings scheduled. Restitution orders remain in effect, with payments to be tracked through the clerk of courts. Any additional updates are expected to come from routine records entries rather than new court appearances.
Author note: Last updated December 10, 2025.