US authorities have arrested former Canadian Olympic snowboarder Ryan Wedding ceremony, ending a years-long worldwide manhunt for a determine investigators describe as a serious cocaine trafficker who relied on cryptocurrency to maneuver and conceal illicit earnings.
Key Takeaways:
- Former Olympian Ryan Wedding ceremony was arrested in Mexico and extradited to the US after years on the FBI’s Most Needed record.
- Authorities allege he ran a cartel-linked cocaine community and used crypto to launder proceeds.
- US officers say the operation generated over $1 billion yearly and spanned a number of nations.
Wedding ceremony, 44, was taken into custody in Mexico late Thursday and transferred to the US on Friday, in keeping with US officers.
The previous athlete, who competed for Workforce Canada on the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake Metropolis, had been listed among the many FBI’s Ten Most Needed fugitives, with a reward of as much as $15 million supplied for data resulting in his seize.
Former Olympic Snowboarder Faces US Expenses in World Drug Case
US Legal professional Basic Pam Bondi stated Wedding ceremony, whom she described as a “onetime Olympian snowboarder-turned alleged violent cocaine kingpin,” will face federal prices within the US associated to drug trafficking, homicide, and working a felony enterprise spanning a number of nations.
FBI Director Kash Patel confirmed the arrest in a submit on X, crediting cooperation with Mexican authorities for finding Wedding ceremony after greater than a decade on the run.
UPDATE: After touchdown in LA as we speak to switch High Ten Most Needed Fugitive Ryan Wedding ceremony, our FBI/DOJ groups are actually touchdown in Charlotte, NC to switch one other – Alejandro Castillo – the High Ten Most Needed Fugitive arrested one week in the past as we speak in Mexico.
Castillo’s fast return… pic.twitter.com/wsrS3eWa2k— FBI Director Kash Patel (@FBIDirectorKash) January 23, 2026
Investigators allege that Wedding ceremony performed a senior position in cocaine distribution networks tied to Mexico’s Sinaloa Cartel, overseeing shipments from Colombia into the US and Canada.
Based on US officers, the operation generated greater than $1 billion yearly in unlawful proceeds at its peak.
The US Treasury Division’s Workplace of International Belongings Management sanctioned Wedding ceremony in November, accusing his group of utilizing cryptocurrency to maneuver and launder drug earnings.
In its discover, the Treasury stated digital property have been used to obscure the stream of funds and conceal massive sums derived from narcotics trafficking.
Mexico’s Safety Secretary Omar García Harfuch stated Wedding ceremony voluntarily surrendered on the U.S. Embassy earlier than being handed over to the FBI.
Patel later informed reporters that Wedding ceremony had been hiding in Mexico for over 10 years and was believed to be beneath cartel safety.
Wedding ceremony arrived Friday at Ontario Worldwide Airport in Southern California, the place federal officers held a press convention following his switch.
Authorities stated they seized firearms, luxurious autos, art work, and different property related to the alleged felony enterprise, and indicated additional arrests could observe because the investigation continues.
Ryan Wedding ceremony’s Earlier Cocaine Case Predates Newest US Expenses
This isn’t Wedding ceremony’s first encounter with US legislation enforcement. In 2008, he was arrested in California in a cocaine trafficking sting involving a Vancouver-based operation.
He was convicted in 2009 and sentenced to 4 years in jail, earlier than being launched round 2011.
The arrest comes as crypto-related crime stays a rising concern. Based on Chainalysis, illicit cryptocurrency addresses acquired a document $154 billion in 2025, a pointy enhance from the yr earlier than.
In one other case, US prosecutors have charged a 23-year-old Brooklyn resident, Ronald Spektor, with stealing roughly $16 million in cryptocurrency from round 100 Coinbase customers via an alleged phishing and social engineering scheme.
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