FBI Places Former Olympic Snowboarder on Most Wanted List

A former Olympic snowboarder has made headlines for allegedly leading a multicultural human trafficking organization.

Ryan James Wedding, 44, hails from Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada. He represented Canada in the 2002 Winter Olympics, competing in men’s parallel giant slalom where he secured 24th place.

It seems, though, that this was the last notable achievement tied to snow for Wedding, as he has since faced accusations of dealing cocaine.

According to reports, Wedding’s first drug-related charge came six years post-Olympics, when he was arrested in San Diego for cocaine trafficking and ultimately convicted of conspiracy.

The FBI has now included Wedding on its Top 10 Most Wanted list. They’re collaborating with the Department of Justice and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police to pursue serious charges against him. These charges include overseeing a criminal enterprise, witness intimidation, and benefiting from laundered drug proceeds.

Wedding is believed to be in Mexico, where he is allegedly being sheltered by cartel officials.

“Ryan Wedding controls one of the most prolific and violent drug trafficking organizations globally, collaborating closely with the Sinaloa Cartel,” stated Attorney General Pam Bondi. She emphasized that efforts will continue until Wedding is apprehended and his organization is dismantled.

Reports indicate that there’s a bounty linked to a witness in a 2024 case, highlighting the intensity of the situation. This witness was tragically shot dead in a Medellin restaurant.

Shocking as it may sound, it was allegedly Wedding’s own lawyer who suggested the elimination of this witness to prevent extradition from Mexico to the U.S. Deepak Balwant Paradkar, a 62-year-old barrister from Thornhill, Ontario, purportedly advised Wedding on this course of action and improperly accessed court documents for him.

Wedding faces several serious allegations, including running a continuing criminal enterprise and involvement in the November 2023 murders of two families in Ontario. These killings were reportedly in retaliation for stolen drug shipments.

FBI Director Kash Patel noted, “Ryan Wedding and his associates are believed to have imported significant quantities of cocaine each year from Colombia through Mexico to U.S. streets.” He assured that the FBI would utilize all available resources to locate Wedding and bring him to justice.

The individuals entangled in this case are quite diverse. For instance, Edwin Basola Hernandez, a reggaeton musician from the Dominican Republic, allegedly provided contact info for witnesses and assisted assassins in tracking them down.

A $15 million reward has been announced for any information leading to Wedding’s arrest, with an additional $2 million offered for information about each of the assassins involved.