The 44-year-old has been accused of trafficking cocaine into the U.S.
ByLuke Barr, Alex Stone, Ivan Pereira, and Meredith Deliso
2:03
Ryan Wedding, former Olympian turned FBI most wanted fugitive, arrestedRyan Wedding, the former Olympic snowboarder has been accused of being a major drug kingpin, was arrested Friday, multiple sources told ABC News.
FBI
Ryan Wedding, the former Olympic snowboarder investigators said has been leading a major drug ring, has been arrested, U.S. officials announced Friday.
The 44-year-old Canadian was on the FBI’s Top Ten Most Wanted List in connection with indictments that allege he is responsible for trafficking “multi-ton quantities of cocaine” from Colombia to Canada and connected with several murders for hire in Canada and Mexico.
“At my direction, Department of Justice agents @FBI have apprehended yet another member of the FBI’s Top Ten Most Wanted List: Ryan Wedding, the onetime Olympian snowboarder-turned alleged violent cocaine kingpin,” U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi said in an X post. “Wedding was flown to the United States where he will face justice.”
FBI Director Kash Patel said Wedding was taken into custody Thursday night in Mexico, where he is believed to have been hiding for over a decade.
Wedding surrendered following weeks of high-stakes negotiating, according to sources. He turned himself in to the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City, and the FBI’s Hostage Rescue Team was part of the effort to take him into custody and transport him back to the U.S., the sources said.
The surrender was “a direct result of pressure applied by Mexican and U.S. law enforcement working in close coordination and cooperation,” the U.S. Embassy in Mexico said in a statement.
Patel happened to be in Mexico City on a preplanned trip when Wedding was apprehended there, the FBI director told reporters during a press briefing upon returning to the U.S. on Friday. Though he didn’t go into further details, citing the “sensitivities” of the operation.
Ryan Wedding timeline: How Canadian went from Olympic athlete to alleged drug kingpin
Wedding will remain in custody and is expected to make his initial appearance in federal court on Monday, according to Akil Davis, the assistant director in charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles field office.
Wedding is accused of leading a transnational drug trafficking operation that shipped “massive amounts of cocaine” — approximately 60 metric tons — through southern California and up to Canada, Davis said during the briefing. He is also wanted for “orchestrating multiple murders of victims and government witnesses,” Davis said.
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“Ryan Wedding tormented several people and several families that will never be the same, but today they get the justice that they sought,” Davis said.
FBI releases images of seized motorcycles believed to belong to former Olympic snowboarder Ryan Wedding
Wedding was previously indicted in Los Angeles federal court on multiple federal charges, including running a continuing criminal enterprise, committing murder in connection with a continuing criminal enterprise and assorted drug crimes.
A superseding indictment was filed in November, alleging that Wedding ordered the killing of a witness who was set to testify against him in a federal drug trafficking case, according to the Justice Department.
Wedding is also facing separate drug charges in Canada, according to Canadian police, which said they “collaborated closely” with the FBI during the investigation.
“This is a great day for public safety in Canada,” Royal Canadian Mounted Police Commissioner Mike Duheme said in a statement. “The capture of Ryan Wedding after a years-long investigation, and this most recent achievement, demonstrates the importance of international collaboration and the success that can be achieved when law enforcement shares intelligence.”
The U.S. Department of State was offering a $15 million reward for information regarding Wedding, who is alleged to be a member of the Sinaloa Cartel, according to Patel.
Before starting his alleged criminal enterprise, Wedding, whose alleged aliases include “El Jefe,” “Giant” and “Public Enemy,” was a professional snowboarder and competed in the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City.
So far, authorities have arrested 36 people for their alleged role in the criminal organization, but are still seeking more, Davis said. The FBI is offering a $2 million reward for information leading to those additional arrests, he said.
Ryan Wedding, ex-Olympic snowboarder accused of being a drug kingpin, is arrested
The Canadian former athlete is charged with overseeing the operations of a criminal enterprise and enriching himself with its laundered drug proceeds.
Former Olympic snowboarder turned alleged drug kingpin in FBI custody
01:47
Jan. 23, 2026, 9:13 PM GMT+7 / Updated Jan. 24, 2026, 12:59 AM GMT+7
By Minyvonne Burke and Michael Kosnar
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Ryan James Wedding, a Canadian former Olympic snowboarder allegedly behind one of the most violent drug trafficking organizations, was arrested Thursday night in Mexico, FBI Director Kash Patel said.
Authorities believe Wedding, 44, is a member of the Sinaloa Cartel and had been hiding in Mexico for more than a decade while “running and participating in a transnational drug trafficking operation,” Patel said Friday in a post on X.
Patel said Wedding shipped hundreds of kilograms of cocaine from Colombia, through Mexico and Southern California to the United States and Canada.
“He went from an Olympic snowboarder to the largest narco-trafficker in modern times. He is a modern-day El Chapo, he is a modern-day Pablo Escobar, and he thought he could evade justice,” Patel said at a news conference, referring to the notorious leader of Mexico’s powerful Sinaloa cartel.
In March, he was added to the FBI’s ‘Ten Most Wanted” list of fugitives, and there was a $15 million reward for information leading to his arrest and/or prosecution.
Attorney General Pam Bondi said Wedding was flown to the U.S., “where he will face justice.”
“Director Patel has worked tirelessly to bring fugitives to justice. We are grateful to our incredible Ambassador Ron Johnson and the Mexican authorities for assisting us in this case,” Bondi said in a post on X.
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He is scheduled to make his first court appearance on Monday.
Wedding’s organization is responsible for shipping about 60 metric tons of cocaine through Southern California, Akil Davis, the assistant director of the FBI’s Los Angeles field office, said at the news conference. He’s also accused of orchestrating “multiple murders of victims and government witnesses.”
One alleged victim was a federal witness who was supposed to testify against him. The witness was fatally shot at a restaurant after authorities said Wedding “placed a bounty” on his head and used a Canadian website to find the witness and his wife.
In November, a grand jury indictment was unsealed charging him in the death of the witness.
FBI announces arrest of alleged drug kingpin Ryan Wedding
“We told you in November we would find Mr. Wedding. And today that day has arrived,” Davis told reporters.
The former athlete was charged in a September 2024 superseding indictment with attempted murder and other counts related to the alleged drug enterprise.
Court documents allege that Wedding’s crime spree began in 2008, six years after he represented Canada in the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City.
Federal prosecutors said he traveled to San Diego with two other men to buy cocaine, according to the documents. The dealer the men had allegedly arranged to meet with was working undercover for the FBI. Wedding was arrested and found guilty of conspiracy to distribute cocaine following a November 2009 trial. He was sentenced to 48 months in federal prison and was released in December 2011, court records show.
Federal law enforcement said in the unsealed indictment that he founded his criminal drug enterprise after his release.
Authorities have arrested 36 people for their role in the organization, Davis said. The U.S. Treasury Department has sanctioned 19 people, including Wedding.
More than 2,300 kilograms of cocaine, 44 kilograms of methamphetamine, 44 kilograms of fentanyl, eight firearms, and over $55 million of illicit assets have been seized in the investigation, said Jim McDonnell, Los Angeles Police Department Chief.
Last month, authorities in Mexico seized dozens of motorcycles worth an estimated $40 million that Wedding was believed to own. They also seized two Olympic medals, two vehicles, drugs, artwork and other items at various locations in Mexico City.
Davis said they are still seeking multiple other people and the State Department is offering a $2 million reward for information that leads to additional arrests.
Canadian ex-Olympic snowboarder turned alleged drug kingpin arrested in Mexico, to face US charges
January 24, 20267:20 AM GMT+7Updated 1 hour ago
- Summary
- Ryan Wedding arrested in Mexico, linked to Sinaloa Cartel
- Wedding charged with drug trafficking, multiple murders
- Wedding’s network allegedly generated over $1 billion annually in drug proceeds
TORONTO, Jan 23 (Reuters) – Ryan Wedding, a Canadian former Olympic snowboarder suspected of becoming a cocaine smuggling kingpin responsible for multiple drug-related murders, has been arrested and brought to the U.S. to face charges, U.S. officials said on Friday.
Speaking at a press conference at an airport east of Los Angeles, FBI Director Kash Patel said Wedding was arrested Thursday evening in Mexico City after years on the run.
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“This individual and his organization and the Sinaloa Cartel poured narcotics into the streets of North America, and killed too many of our youth and corrupted too many of our citizens,” Patel said. “That ends today.”
Patel described Wedding as the “largest narco-trafficker in modern times,” akin to notorious drug lords like Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman and Pablo Escobar.
Wedding, 44, is on the FBI’s “Top 10 Most Wanted” list for allegedly running a transnational drug trafficking network responsible for transporting hundreds of kilograms of cocaine from Colombia through Mexico to the United States and Canada. U.S. officials have accused him of working with Mexico’s Sinaloa Cartel and controlling an operation responsible for generating more than $1 billion a year in illegal drug proceeds.
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The U.S. government had offered a $15 million reward for information leading to his arrest or conviction. Patel did not disclose whether the reward would be paid out.
MEXICO SAYS CANADIAN VOLUNTARILY SURRENDERED
Item 1 of 3 FBI Director Kash Patel announces the apprehension of Ryan Wedding, a former Canadian Olympic snowboarder who was on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitive list, during a press conference in Ontario, California, U.S., January 23, 2026. REUTERS/Mike Blake
[1/3]FBI Director Kash Patel announces the apprehension of Ryan Wedding, a former Canadian Olympic snowboarder who was on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitive list, during a press conference in Ontario, California, U.S., January 23, 2026. REUTERS/Mike Blake Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab
Patel did not specify how Wedding was captured, but said the FBI worked with Mexican authorities to apprehend him.
Mexico’s security ministry said in a statement that a Canadian citizen “voluntarily surrendered” at the U.S. embassy in Mexico on Thursday.
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Wedding, who competed for Canada at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah, has been charged with overseeing a criminal enterprise and various drug trafficking offenses, according to the U.S. Department of Justice, opens new tab.
Wedding was also accused of ordering several drug-related murders, including that of a U.S. federal witness in Colombia in January 2025 before he could testify against him, the Justice Department previously said.
He is also charged with directing the murders of two people in Ontario, Canada, in November 2023 over a stolen drug shipment, and the murder of another person in Canada in May 2024 over a drug debt, according to the FBI.
An FBI spokesperson said Wedding will be held in custody in Los Angeles over the weekend and will make an initial court appearance in U.S. District Court on Monday.
Akil Davis, assistant director of the FBI’s Los Angeles field office, said the FBI has arrested 36 people associated with Wedding’s alleged criminal organization. The agency has also seized drugs, cash, weapons, vehicles, artwork and jewelry worth millions of dollars as part of the investigation, he said.
“We are still seeking multiple individuals wanted for their roles in this organization,” Davis said, citing a $2 million reward for information leading to additional arrests.
