Wisconsin

What happened with the missing father who allegedly faked a kayaking accident and fled to Europe?

Published

1 year ago

November 12, 2024

What happened with the missing father who allegedly faked a kayaking accident and fled to Europe?

Sheriff Mark Podoll stood before the cameras, pleading with Ryan Borgwardt — a husband and father — to contact his family. Months earlier, officials had conducted an extensive search and rescue for Borgwardt.

Since Aug. 12, officials and family have believed that the Wisconsin resident has been missing after kayaking at Green Lake.

During a Nov. 8 press conference, Podoll revealed that evidence suggests Borgwardt is instead alive, possibly faked his death, and potentially in Europe.

“We know that he’s not in our lake,” Podoll said, referring to Green Lake, where Borgwardt’s empty kayak was found adrift in August, sparking fear that he had drowned and a lengthy search effort that included canine searches and divers. Now, authorities have shifted their focus.

This shift in the investigation has prompted new questions about Ryan Borgwardt, who he is and what might have caused him to lead his family into believing he died.

Who is Ryan Borgwardt?

Ryan Borgwardt is a resident of Watertown, Wisconsin, who was believed to have gone missing on Aug. 12, 2024, after he failed to return from a kayaking trip on Green Lake.

He is married and a father to high school and grade school-aged kids, according to Podell.

When did Ryan Borgwardt go missing?

Ryan Borgwardt.Courtesy Green Lake County Sheriff’s Office

Borgwardt was last seen the night of Aug. 12, the sheriff said during the news conference. Podell said deputies responded to a missing persons call around 5:32 p.m. local time, with Borgwardt’s car and trailer found in the Dodge Memorial Park area.

Podoll noted that the sheriff’s office had pinned Borgwardt’s last known location to Green Lake.

“Deputies headed that way, checked areas around the lake and found Ryan’s vehicle, along with his trailer, parked in the area of Dodge Memorial Park,” Podoll explained.

Borgwardt’s capsized kayak was first found in the western part of the lake, the following day his fishing rod and tackle box, with his wallet, keys and license, was found, Podoll said.

Three cadaver dogs and a dive team were also brought in to help with the search on Aug. 24. Still, Podoll said, after an almost eight-week search, they could not find him.

What do officials think happened to Ryan Borgwardt?

Officials say evidence suggests Borgwardt may have faked his own disappearance and left the country for Europe.

Podell said that on Oct. 7 they discovered that Borgwardt’s passport was “run” on Aug. 13, a day after he went missing. As they continued their investigation, detectives discovered that law enforcement officials in Canada ran his name and that Borgwardt obtained a new passport, Green Lake County authorities said, per NBC News.

Investigators then conducted a digital forensic analysis of Borgwardt’s laptop, which his wife gave them, and concluded “that he was in some place in Europe.” Podell alleged that Borgwardt replaced the laptop’s hard drive and cleared the browser on the day he went missing.

“We found out that he moved funds to a foreign bank, changing his email and communication with a woman from Uzbekistan,” Podoll remarked, noting that Borgwardt took out a $375,000 life insurance policy in January and purchased airline cards. “Due to these discoveries of the new evidence, we were sure that Ryan was not in our lake.”

“Everything that we have found — we’re in a really good position that we know he is someplace out there,” Podoll continued. “All we wanna know is he’s safe.”

What’s next?

Officials are pressing on with their investigation into Borgwardt, focusing their efforts on gathering further information about his motive and whereabouts.

The sheriff also encourages anyone with knowledge to come forward. Podoll said it was too early to identify any charges that Borgwardt might face.

Borgwardt’s wife, Emily Borgwardt, told NBC News via text, “I cannot make any comments at this time since it is still an active investigation.”

The investigation continues to involve multiple agencies like the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security, with officials seeking to locate Borgwardt and address any potential legal violations.

“Our goals is to identify any crimes that have been committed by any individuals who assisted with this crime,” Podoll said.

Authorities continue to hold out hope that Borgwardt will make contact with them. During the conference, Podoll urged him to reach out to his family or authorities.

“There’s one last thing I want to do, and this is to Ryan. Ryan, if you’re viewing this, I plea that you contact us or contact your family. We understand that things can happen, but there’s a family that wants their Daddy back.”

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Wisconsin

[Photo Story] Penn State Men’s Hockey Disappoints Against Wisconsin

Published

5 hours ago

March 9, 2026

Press Room

[Photo Story] Penn State Men’s Hockey Disappoints Against Wisconsin

With the last regular-season series, No. 6 Penn State men’s hockey dropped both games to No. 11 Wisconsin over the weekend. The Nittany Lions were outplayed both nights, wrapping up their season to finish with a record of 20-12-2.

Of course, our photographers were at Pegula Ice Arena to capture all the action. Let’s take a look.

Wisconsin was dominant in both games against Penn State, winning 7-3 and 5-2, respectively. The Badgers outshot the Nittany Lions 41-31 on Thursday and 37-25 on Friday. Charlie Cerrato made a notable appearance. He played his first game back on Friday after being injured January 9 against Minnesota.

In Thursday’s game, the Nittany Lions fought for the first two periods, but the Badgers’ goal opened the third period and killed all of the momentum. In Friday’s game, the Nittany Lions fell behind from the very start and never built momentum to overcome the deficit.

Penn State now goes on to the Big Ten Tournament, where it will go up against Minnesota at home. Puck is set for 7 p.m. on Wednesday, March 11.

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Ella is a second-year Telecommunications major from Miami, Florida. She enjoys taking photos, listening to all genres of music, coffee, and has become a self proclaimed grandma. If needed, you can contact her through email at [email protected] or on Twitter @ellawehm

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Wisconsin

Wisconsin Lottery Pick 3, Pick 4 results for March 8, 2026

Published

17 hours ago

March 9, 2026

Press Room

Wisconsin Lottery Pick 3, Pick 4 results for March 8, 2026

The Wisconsin Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big.

Here’s a look at March 8, 2026, results for each game:

Winning Pick 3 numbers from March 8 drawing

Midday: 2-3-5

Evening: 2-2-5

Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 4 numbers from March 8 drawing

Midday: 6-2-7-6

Evening: 4-8-7-6

Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning All or Nothing numbers from March 8 drawing

Midday: 02-04-05-07-09-10-12-17-19-20-22

Evening: 02-03-05-06-08-09-12-13-14-16-18

Check All or Nothing payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Badger 5 numbers from March 8 drawing

05-15-17-20-24

Check Badger 5 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning SuperCash numbers from March 8 drawing

05-11-19-29-30-31, Doubler: Y

Check SuperCash payouts and previous drawings here.

Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results

Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your lottery prize

Prizes up to $599: Can be claimed at any Wisconsin Lottery retailer.
Prizes from $600 to $199,999: Can be claimed in person at a Lottery Office. By mail, send the signed ticket and a completed claim form available on the Wisconsin Lottery claim page to: Prizes, PO Box 777 Madison, WI 53774.
Prizes of $200,000 or more: Must be claimed in person at the Madison Lottery office. Call the Lottery office prior to your visit: 608-261-4916.

Can Wisconsin lottery winners remain anonymous?

No, according to the Wisconsin Lottery. Due to the state’s open records laws, the lottery must, upon request, release the name and city of the winner. Other information about the winner is released only with the winner’s consent.

When are the Wisconsin Lottery drawings held?

Powerball: 9:59 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
Mega Millions: 10:00 p.m. CT on Tuesday and Friday.
Super Cash: 9:00 p.m. CT daily.
Pick 3 (Day): 1:30 p.m. CT daily.
Pick 3 (Evening): 9:00 p.m. CT daily.
Pick 4 (Day): 1:30 p.m. CT daily.
Pick 4 (Evening): 9:00 p.m. CT daily.
All or Nothing (Day): 1:30 p.m. CT daily.
All or Nothing (Evening): 9 p.m. CT daily.
Megabucks: 9:00 p.m. CT on Wednesday and Saturday.
Badger 5: 9:00 p.m. CT daily.

That lucky feeling: Peek at the past week’s winning numbers.

Feeling lucky? WI man wins $768 million Powerball jackpot **

WI Lottery history: Top 10 Powerball and Mega Million jackpots

This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Wisconsin editor. You can send feedback using this form.

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Wisconsin

Smith: DNR shares positive summary of 2025 Wisconsin deer hunting seasons

Published

1 day ago

March 8, 2026

Press Room

Smith: DNR shares positive summary of 2025 Wisconsin deer hunting seasons

Hunters in the 2025 Wisconsin white-tailed deer hunting seasons registered more bucks than any year since 2007 and the most deer overall since 2012, according to the Department of Natural Resources.

What’s more, the harvest of antlerless deer – the key to herd control efforts – showed a year-over-year increase of 5% and the archer, crossbow, holiday, late antlerless and youth seasons all showed higher deer registrations.

“All in all, our harvest numbers were strong, the strongest we’ve seen in a couple decades,” said Ryan Haffele, DNR acting deer program specialist.

Haffele and several DNR colleagues presented the 2025 Wisconsin deer hunting season summary at the Feb. 25 Natural Resources Board meeting in Madison.

The 2025 statewide deer hunting opportunities opened Sept. 13 with the crossbow and archer (vertical bow) seasons and included a Oct. 11 and 12 youth, Nov. 22-30 gun, Dec. 1-10 muzzleloader and Dec. 11-14 late antlerless hunts.

Many deer management units also included a Dec. 24 to Jan. 1 holiday hunt and late bow seasons that closed Jan. 31.

All told, hunters had more opportunity than ever to take a deer in Wisconsin.

Their pursuit was further aided by a statewide deer population estimated at 1.82 million following the 2024-25 hunting seasons, highest on record, according to the DNR. Two consecutive mild winters helped bolster the herd in the northern and central forest zones and deer numbers in the agricultural zones have generally swelled over the last decade after the Wisconsin Legislature prohibited Earn-A-Buck regulations and the early gun hunting season for antlerless deer.

Both the central and southern agricultural zones showed record high deer populations, according to the 2024 post-hunt estimate by the DNR.

The Feb. 25 report was dominated by positives as hunters took advantage of the higher deer numbers and excellent late season conditions.

The 2025 results are especially impressive since the number of deer hunters has dropped by 116,640 (or 16%) in the last 25 years, according to the DNR.

The DNR data showed hunters in 2025 registered 389,481 deer, including 165,754 bucks and 173,727 antlerless deer. The totals, through the end of January, will increase when registrations on agricultural damage tags and tribal harvest are added in the coming weeks.

The seasons started out strong with 8,480 deer registered in the two-day youth hunt, 18% higher than the five-year average.

The only season in 2025 that didn’t show a year-over-year or five-year increase was the nine-day gun hunt. Hunters registered 183,094 deer in the season, which has the most annual participants and contributes the biggest harvest. But hunter effort over the last three days was hampered by a heavy statewide snowstorm and the deer kill fell 4% from the previous year.

Once the storm passed, though, the snow cover persisted through December and helped hunters see and track deer in the muzzleloader, late antlerless and holiday hunts, Haffele said.

In the muzzleloader season, hunters registered 11,911 deer, 68% higher than the five-year average, while the total in the four-day December antlerless season was 10,591 deer (30% higher) and holiday antlerless deer hunt was 11,278 deer (77% higher).

Haffele said the 2025 data helps illustrate an important aspect of deer management.

“It helps tell the story of how a lot of our hunting harvest can be condition-based,” Haffele said. “When conditions are good we still have the capacity to get out there and have excellent harvest conditions. But the counter of that is when conditions aren’t as good it can also bring down our harvest, which we don’t have control over most of the time.”

Continuing a trend since 2014 when crossbows became legal for all hunters regardless of age or physical ability, the crossbow season kill of 70,050 was the highest on record.

But deer registered by archers (users of vertical bows) also was higher in 2025. The archer kill of 41,461 was 5% higher than the five-year average.

The 2025 seasons were the first with a hybrid system of deer management units. Most of the state uses county lines to designate DMUs, but last year the northern forest and central forest zones were rearranged into habitat-based units.

While it will take a few more years of data to allow direct comparisons, Haffele said the first year results looked good.

Among counties or deer management units, Marathon County showed the highest deer registration, with 11,876 deer, followed by Waupaca (10,525), Shawano (9,798), Vernon (9,344) and Dunn (8,972).

License sales: Sales of deer hunting licenses continued a trend, albeit very slightly, in the negative direction. In 2025, the DNR reported sales of 792,969 deer hunting licenses (gun, crossbow and archer combined) a 0.1% decline from 2024. The gun license sales of 552,362 were down 0.5%.

Among the licenses, the DNR reported 40,348 were sold to “new hunters,” a 0.6% decrease from 2024.

Hunting incidents: Two firearm-related incidents were reported during the nine-day gun season, including one fatality, according to the DNR.

The last decade has shown an average of five incidents for the nine-day season. Six of the last 10 have had no fatal incident.

CWD positives increase: As of March 4, the DNR had tested 18,232 deer in Wisconsin for chronic wasting disease and 2,035 (or 11.1%) were CWD-positive, according to the DNR. The number of CWD-positive deer and percentage of positive tests are highest since the state began testing for the disease in the 1990s. It continues a trend toward increasing number of infected deer and higher prevalence rates in the affected areas.

Under the current “monitor only” strategy in Wisconsin, the trajectories of higher prevalence and geographical spread of CWD are expected to continue in the state, according to wildlife disease experts.

The fatal disease was first identified in the 1960s in captive deer at a Colorado research facility. It was documented in Wisconsin for the first time in deer killed in the 2001 hunting season near Mount Horeb. It has since spread to more than half of the state’s counties.

Although CWD has not been proven to cause illness in humans, the Centers for Disease Control and other health agencies recommend humans not consume meat from a CWD-positive animal. The DNR provides free, voluntary CWD testing on deer samples by hunters and others.

Deer donation higher: Hunters provided 1,331 deer to the state’s deer donation program in 2025, a 21% year-over-year increase, according to the DNR.

The number is expected to rise since about one-fourth of processors hadn’t filed reports as of Feb. 25. They have until March 31 to do so.

The program had 58 participating processors in 41 counties for the 2025 deer hunting seasons. In another optimistic note, the number of processors increased for the second consecutive year, Haffele said.

The program relies on hunters to donate deer. Venison from donated deer is processed and distributed to food pantries across the state. Since the program began in 2000, hunters have donated over 100,000 deer, which were processed into over four million pounds of ground venison, according to the DNR.

“Overall a lot of great, positive things coming out of the 2025 deer seasons that we hope will set us up for a successful 2026,” Haffele said.

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