Former Canadian Olympic snowboarder Ryan Wedding has been added to the FBI’s list of 10 most-wanted fugitives. Authorities have increased the reward for information leading to his arrest to USD $10 million.
The announcement was made during a news conference in Los Angeles on Thursday by the FBI and U.S. State Department. The manhunt, which began in 2015 under the RCMP, has now intensified.
Ryan Wedding, 43, originally from Thunder Bay, Ont., is accused of leading a criminal organization responsible for moving significant amounts of cocaine from Colombia through Mexico and California into Canada and the U.S. Authorities allege he also orchestrated several murders and attempted murder.
U.S. officials believe Ryan Wedding has been living in Mexico and is actively evading capture.
“Wedding went from competing in the Olympics to distributing cocaine in both the U.S. and Canada,” said Akil Davis, assistant director of the FBI’s Los Angeles field office, in a statement on Thursday.
“His alleged involvement in the murders of rivals makes him extremely dangerous. Adding him to the most-wanted list and increasing the reward aims to engage the public in helping us locate him before more lives are at risk.”
Previously, the FBI offered a $50,000 reward for information leading to Wedding’s arrest and extradition to the U.S.
Known by aliases such as “El Jefe” and “Public Enemy,” Wedding faces eight charges, including conspiracy to export cocaine, three counts of murder tied to an ongoing criminal enterprise, and one count of attempted murder.
He is one of 16 individuals charged in connection with the alleged drug operation. These charges have not been proven in court.
RCMP Actively Hunting Ryan Wedding
Wedding and another Canadian were accused of directing the murders of two family members in Caledon, Ont., on Nov. 20, 2023, as retaliation for a stolen drug shipment.
Ontario Provincial Police stated the victims were “completely innocent” and mistakenly targeted. Investigators also linked two murders in the Niagara and Peel regions last year to the same organization.
The RCMP stated it collaborated with the FBI for over a year on the investigation on Ryan Wedding with support from agencies in Canada, the U.S., Mexico, and Colombia. Wedding also faces separate drug trafficking charges in Canada dating back to 2015, according to the RCMP.
Court records show Wedding was previously convicted in the U.S. for conspiracy to distribute cocaine and served a prison sentence in 2010. Authorities believe he resumed drug trafficking after his release and has since been under the protection of Mexico’s Sinaloa Cartel.
