Former Olympic Snowboarder Ryan Wedding Arrested, Faces U.S. Drug and Murder Charges

Ryan Wedding, a former Canadian Olympic snowboarder accused of becoming a major cocaine trafficking kingpin, has been arrested in Mexico and brought to the United States to face federal charges, U.S. officials said on Friday. Speaking at a press conference near Los Angeles, FBI Director Kash Patel said Wedding was apprehended Thursday evening in Mexico City after years on the run, following close coordination between U.S. and Mexican authorities.

Patel alleged that Wedding worked closely with the Sinaloa Cartel, running a transnational drug trafficking network that moved hundreds of kilograms of cocaine from Colombia through Mexico into the United States and Canada. U.S. officials claim the operation generated more than $1 billion annually in illegal proceeds. Wedding, 44, had been placed on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted list, with the U.S. government offering a $15 million reward for information leading to his capture.

According to the U.S. Department of Justice, Wedding is charged with leading a criminal enterprise, large-scale drug trafficking, and ordering multiple drug-related murders, including the killing of a U.S. federal witness in Colombia in January 2025. He is also accused of directing murders in Canada linked to stolen drug shipments and unpaid drug debts. Wedding is being held in custody in Los Angeles and is scheduled to make his initial court appearance in U.S. District Court on Monday.

Pic Courtesy: google/ images are subject to copyright