Ryan Wedding, a former Olympic snowboarding standout for Team Canada, is the subject of multiple federal charges, including murder and drug trafficking.
The 44-year-old, who competed in the 2002 Salt Lake City Games, is believed to be in hiding in Mexico under the protection of the Sinaloa cartel. Dubbed the "modern-day iteration of Pablo Escobar" by FBI director Kash Patel, Wedding faces allegations of being a cocaine kingpin from the FBI and the U.S. Department of Justice.
Here's what you need to know about Wedding, a former snowboarding star now included in the FBI's Most Wanted list.
Who is Ryan Wedding?
Wedding, 44, is a former snowboarding standout who starred for Team Canada and competed in the 2002 Winter Olympics. He is accused of partnering with the Sinaloa cartel, one of Mexico's biggest drug-trafficking organizations.
Attorney general Pam Bondi claimed that Wedding is Canada's preeminent cocaine distributor in a Nov. 19 news conference. He is one of more than 35 people indicted in the case, with Wedding alleged to have ordered the murders of at least three people, one of whom was expected to testify against him in January.
“He is responsible for engineering a narco-trafficking and narco-terrorism program that we have not seen in a long time," Patel said, per The New York Times.
Ryan Wedding murder case
Wedding is charged with ordering the murder of a witness expected to testify against him in Colombia, according to U.S. Authorities. Wedding and co-conspirators are accused of using a Canadian website called "the Dirty News" to post a photograph of the witness so he could be identified and killed. The man was followed into a restaurant and shot in the back of the head.
Wedding is believed to have ordered the man's murder to avoid extradition to the U.S. His lawyer was also apprehended, with Bill Essayli, the first assistant U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California, saying that the lawyer told Wedding that the murder of a federal witness would see the case be dismissed.
“Wedding placed the bounty on the victim’s head, and the erroneous belief that the victim’s death would result in the dismissal of criminal charges against him and his international drug trafficking ring, and would further ensure that he was not extradited to the United States. He was wrong," said Essayli, per The Associated Press.
Wedding is also accused of playing a role in the deaths of a couple in their 50s who were shot and killed in their home in Caledon, Ontario. Police said the murders were a case of mistaken identity, with the house believed to be targeted over a dispute over a stolen drug shipment.
Wedding is also linked with the murders of two other people, according to The Associated Press.
Ryan Wedding charges
Wedding faces charges of drug-trafficking as well as five counts of murder. Police seized $13.1 million in his assets as well as $3.2 million in cryptocurrency. Federal officials said police also confiscated weapons and 2,000 kilograms of cocaine.
Ryan Wedding cartel connection
U.S. Officials claim Wedding joined forces with the Sinaloa cartel. His organization traffics 60 metric tons of cocaine a year into the United States, according to Bondi.
Working under the aliases "El Jefe", "Public Enemy" and "James Conrad King", Wedding's drug ring is believed to stretch as far as Colombia, according to federal officials.
Where is Ryan Wedding?
Wedding is believed to be hiding in Mexico under the protection of the Sinaloa cartel.
Has Ryan Wedding been arrested?
Wedding has been arrested in the past. He served time in an American prison after being convicted of conspiracy to distribute cocaine and was sentenced in 2010, federal records obtained by The Associated Press show. He is believed to have resumed drug-trafficking upon his release, former U.S. Attorney in Los Angeles Martin Estrada said in 2024.
Wedding hasn't yet been arrested on his latest charges, although he was first indicted in Oct. 2024 on charges of trafficking copious amounts of cocaine from California to Canada. He's facing three charges of murder — one of which stems from the killing of a man expected to testify against him in January, the other involving a couple in their 50s who police say were killed in their homes in Caledon, Ontario.
There's currently a $15 million reward for information leading to Wedding's capture, up from $10 million. Federal officials are also offering a $2 million reward for information leading to the arrest of others involved in the witness's killing.
Despite his formal lack of arrest, Wedding is a part of the FBI's most wanted list.
FBI Most Wanted List
Here's a look at the nine people who make up the most recent iteration of the FBI's Most Wanted list, as well as the charges levied against them.
- Bhadreshkumar Chetanbhai Patel (murder)
- Alejandro Castillo (murder)
- Yulan Adonay Archaga Carias (racketeering, cocaine importation conspiracy, possession and conspiracy to possess machine guns)
- Ruja Ignatova (fraud)
- Omar Alexander Cardenas (murder)
- Wilver Villegas-Palomino (narcoterrorism, international cocaine distribution conspiracy, international cocaine distribution)
- Fausto Isidro Meza Flores (conspiracy to manufacture and distribute cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, marijuana)
- Ryan James Wedding (Drug-trafficking)
- Giovanni Vicente Mosquera Serrano (international cocaine distribution)
Ryan Wedding Olympic snowboarding career
Born in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Wedding shone on the slopes, emerging as a budding skiing and snowboarding prospect after moving to Coquitlam, British Columbia as an adolescent.
He earned a spot on the Canadian National Ski Team as a teenager and claimed a silver medal at the 2001 Junior World Championships. Wedding made his Olympic debut in the 2002 Winter Olympics, finishing 24th in the men's parallel giant jump, per RCI.
Shortly thereafter, he stepped away from the sport.