Date July 17, 2013 - 8:13AM
Michael Boatwright, woke up with amnesia, calling himself Johan Ek Photo: AP
Palm Springs, California: Doctors are looking into the mystery of a US man who awoke speaking only Swedish, with no memory of his past, after he was found unconscious four months ago at a Southern California motel.
Michael Boatwright, 61, woke up with amnesia, calling himself Johan Ek, The Desert Sun reported.
Sometimes it just makes me furious... I don't know anybody, I don't recognise anybody.
Mr Boatwright was found unconscious in a motel room in Palm Springs in February.
Now calling himself Johan Ek, he was found carrying a veterans' medical card, inset, identifying him as Michael Thomas Boatwright, but has no memory of his son and two ex-wives. Photo: USA Today screengrab
After police arrived, he was transported to the Desert Regional Medical Centre where he woke up.
Advertisement <iframe id="dcAd-1-3" src="http://ad-apac.doubleclick.net/adi/onl.smh.news/world;cat=world;ctype=article;pos=3;sz=300x250;tile=3;ord=6.2155555E7?" width='300' height='250' scrolling="no" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0"> </iframe>
Hospital officials said Boatwright may have been in town for a tennis tournament in the Coachella Valley.
He was found with a duffel bag of exercise clothes, a backpack and tennis racquets.
He also carried four forms of identification - a passport, a California identification card, a veteran's medical card and a Social Security card - all of which identified him as Michael Thomas Boatwright.
Palm Springs police have documented his information in case anyone lists Boatwright as missing or wanted, authorities said.
In March, doctors diagnosed Boatwright with Transient Global Amnesia, a condition triggered by physical or emotional trauma that can last for several months.
The rare mental disorder is characterised by memory loss, "sudden and unplanned travel," and possible adoption of a new identity, according to the Sun.
After an extensive search, medical personnel and social workers have been unable to locate Mr Boatwright's next of kin.
Authorities are still unsure of his birthplace, listed on his identification as Florida.
Photos show him in Sweden at a young age.
Swedish public records show Mr Boatwright lived in the Nordic country on and off between 1981 and 2003.
Several Swedes on Tuesday said they knew of him as an American with a big interest in medieval history and jousting.
Swede Olof Sahlin said he met Boatwright around 1985 through their joint interest in medieval history.
He said he saw the American at jousting events regularly in the 1980s and sporadically in the early 1990s.
"He was nice, sympathetic and talented at fighting in plate armour," Mr Sahlin told The Associated Press.
"A little bit reserved maybe."
Mr Sahlin said he never knew how Mr Boatwright made a living during his time in Sweden but has now heard from other friends that he briefly worked as a personal assistant and in the construction sector.
Mr Sahlin said their last contact was in 1999 and he doesn't know what happened to him after that.
Mr Boatwright doesn't recall how to exchange money, take public transportation or seek temporary housing like homeless shelters or hotels, the social worker assigned to his case, Lisa Hunt-Vasquez, told the Sun.
He doesn't remember his son and two ex-wives, either.
He has no income or insurance, further complicating his treatment at Desert Regional.
And he has little money he can access - only $US180.
He also has a few Chinese bank accounts but can only access one account, which holds $US7, according to the newspaper.
Doctors don't know how much longer he will be able to stay at the centre.
Aside from his amnesia, Mr Boatwright is in good health.
The hospital is currently looking for alternatives that would keep him off the streets.
For now, Mr Boatwright is unsure of both his past and his future.
"Sometimes it makes me really sad and sometimes it just makes me furious about the whole situation and the fact that I don't know anybody, I don't recognise anybody," Mr Boatwright told the newspaper.
AP
