A former Olympic snowboarder has been indicted by federal prosecutors for allegedly leading an international drug trafficking operation that imported hundreds of pounds of cocaine into the United States and was linked to orchestrating “multiple murders.”
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California revealed the charges on Thursday against 43-year-old Ryan James Wedding, a Canadian national believed to be in Mexico and currently a fugitive. The indictment includes eight charges such as murder, conspiracy to engage in a criminal enterprise, and conspiring to possess, distribute, and export cocaine.
According to prosecutors, Wedding’s organization smuggled cocaine from Colombia through Mexico and the Los Angeles area before distributing it across the United States and Canada using long-haul trucking. Known by aliases including “El Jefe,” “Giant,” and “Public Enemy,” Wedding’s group reportedly used violence, including several murders, to further their operations.
Wedding and his associate Andrew Clark allegedly orchestrated the killings of two individuals in Ontario, Canada, in November 2023 as revenge for a stolen drug shipment, resulting in another person being injured in the incident. It is also claimed that they ordered a third murder in May 2024 over an unpaid drug debt.
U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada emphasized at a press conference that Wedding made a conscious choice to engage in both drug trafficking and murder. “They were killers. Anyone who got in their way they would target with violence, including murder,” he stated.
Wedding represented Canada at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City in the parallel giant slalom event. He is among 16 individuals facing charges related to the drug trafficking network. While Clark was apprehended in Mexico in October, four others, including Wedding, remain at large. Law enforcement has confiscated over one ton of cocaine, firearms, ammunition, and significant amounts of cash and cryptocurrency during their investigation.
In addition to the U.S. charges, Wedding faces drug-related charges in Canada and has a previous conviction for conspiracy to distribute cocaine, for which he served prison time in 2010. Estrada noted that after his release, Wedding continued drug trafficking activities and had ties to the Sinaloa Cartel in Mexico.
The FBI is offering a reward of $50,000 for information that leads to Wedding’s capture and extradition.