Wisconsin kayaker who faked his own death tells police he’s ‘safe’

Ryan Borgwardt pretended to drown so he could leave wife and children and flee to Europe, Green Lake authorities said

A Wisconsin man who faked his own drowning this summer so he could leave his wife and three children is living in eastern Europe and has been communicating with authorities, a sheriff said on Thursday.

Ryan Borgwardt has been talking with law enforcement since 11 November after disappearing for three months, Mark Podoll, the Green Lake county sheriff, said at a news conference. Podoll later showed a video that Borgwardt had sent the sheriff's office that day.