Missing Lake Tahoe Paddleboarder Found Safe In Missouri

(CBS13) - A Polish tourist who went missing while paddleboarding on Lake Tahoe last Tuesday has been found safe in Missouri.

Investigators began searching for Zbigniew ("Zibi") Moryn after his rented board and GoPro camera -- containing photos of him on the board -- were found on the lake, with no sign of Moryn.

Around 10 a.m. today, South Lake Tahoe Police Department investigators made telephone contact with Moryn who says that while paddleboarding on the lake, a personal watercraft drove up next to him and created some wake, which, along with strong winds, caused him to fall off of the board. Moryn was not wearing a life jacket at the time, and rather than exhaust himself by trying to get the board and potentially drown, he says he swam to shore, according to a statement from South Lake Tahoe police.

Within an hour of the time he took photos, a boater found his rented paddleboard, along with his camera and life jacket, floating in the lake.

Moryn returned to the rental business and turned in the paddle without mentioning the board. He rented his board in cash, and because of a language barrier, did not leave his name.

Tips, combined with clues police gathered on social media, led them to his traveling companion, Ed Berger, who lives in Arizona. Berger told police Moryn was in Missouri.