March 7 (UPI) — Former Canadian Olympic snowboarder Ryan James Wedding was added to the FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitive list on Thursday as U.S. authorities hunt for the man they accuse of operating a transnational drug trafficking operation that shipped thousands of pounds of cocaine from Colombia to Canada and the United States.
Wedding, 43, is believed to be residing in Mexico, and the U.S. Department of State’s Narcotic Rewards Program on Thursday announced a $10 million reward for information leading to his arrest and conviction.
The FBI is warning that he “should be considered armed and dangerous.”
“Ryan James Wedding is wanted for allegedly running and participating in a transnational drug trafficking operation that routinely shipped hundreds of kilograms of cocaine from Colombia, through Mexico and Southern California, to Canada and other locations in the United States,” the FBI said in a statement.
“Additionally, it is alleged that Wedding was involved in orchestrating multiple murders in furtherance of these drug crimes.”
Former Canadian Olympic snowboarder Ryan James Wedding, seen here in an undated photo from 2024, was added Thursday to the FBI’s infamous Ten Most Wanted Fugitive List. Photo courtesy FBI/Release
Wedding represented Canada at the Salt Lake City 2002 Winter Olympics, finishing 24th in parallel giant slalom.
In the interim years, he has been accused of becoming a drug lord.
A U.S. indictment announced in October accuses Wedding, Canadian citizen Andrew Clark, 34, and 14 other co-conspirators of operating a drug ring that smuggled thousands of pounds of cocaine through Mexico and Southern California. Clark was arrested by Mexican authorities on Oct. 8, about 10 days before the U.S. indictment was revealed.
Federal prosecutors said Wedding, Clark and the others conspired to ship bulk quantities of cocaine from Southern California through a Canada-based drug transportation network from January 2024 through August.
The shipments were transported from Mexico to Los Angeles, where they were stored in stash houses before being picked up by couriers for transport into Canada on long-haul semi-trucks.
During the law enforcement investigation, nearly 2 metric tons of cocaine with a street value of up to $25.2 million, three firearms, amunitation more than $255,400 in U.S. currency and more than $3.2 million in cryptocurrency were seized.
“Wedding went from shredding powder on the slopes at the Olympics to distributing powder cocaine on the streets of U.S. cities and in his native Canada,” Akil Davis, assistant director for the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office, said Thursday in a statement.
Wedding and Clark have been accused of turning to murder as part of the drug conspiracy, allegedly directing the killing of at least three people.
U.S. Prosecutors said they were behind the Nov. 20, 2023, shooting that killed two people and injured a third in the Ontario town of Caledon.
They also allegedly ordered the murder of a third victim, 39-year-old Mohammad Zafar, on May 18, 2024, in Brampton, Ontario.
Meanwhile, Clark and another defendant, 23-year-old Malik Damion Cunningham, have been charged with a fourth murder.
Following the announcement, authorities in Canada were quick to publicize that Wedding had been added to the FBI’s most infamous list.
“We will continue working with our U.S. and Mexico counterparts in the search for Wedding,” the Royal Canadian Mounted Police said on X, referring to Wedding as the “alleged leader of a Mexican cartel-linked criminal network.”
