Alleged drug lord and ex-Olympian Ryan Wedding arrested

Former Canadian Olympic snowboarder and suspected drug lord Ryan Wedding has been arrested in Mexico and will be extradited to the United States after years on the run, FBI Director Kash Patel said.

Wedding, who was on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list, is accused of leading a transnational drug trafficking operation that transported tons of cocaine across international borders.

Wedding, 44, was also wanted for murder. U.S. officials had said they believed Wedding was living in Mexico under the protection of the Sinaloa drug cartel.

The head of Canada’s federal police, who assisted in the investigation, spoke alongside Patel on Friday to praise the law enforcement operation.

“No single agency or nation can combat transnational organized crime,” said Mike Duheme, Commissioner of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP).

“We can finally say that our communities, our countries, are much safer with the arrest of Ryan Wedding,” he added.

Wedding is expected to make his first appearance in court in Los Angeles on Monday.

Wedding is accused of running a vast drug trade, responsible for importing some 60 tons of cocaine a year.

The organization operated throughout North America, as well as several countries in Latin America and the Caribbean, and was also the largest supplier of cocaine to Canada, bringing in approximately $1 billion annually.

Before being arrested, Wedding was charged with the murder of a federal witness in a case against him. Authorities say he also ordered the killings of several other people.

Wedding now faces a slew of criminal charges, including witness tampering and intimidation, murder, money laundering and drug trafficking.

The FBI had already placed a $15 million (£11 million) reward for information leading to his arrest. Patel declined to say whether anyone would claim the reward money.

U.S. officials have released few details about how Wedding was captured, other than to say his arrest took place Thursday evening in Mexico City.

Mexico’s top security official, Omar García Harfuch, said in an article on X that Patel traveled to Mexico City on Thursday and left with two fugitives on the FBI’s 10 most wanted list.

He did not name the arrested men, but said one of them was a “Canadian citizen who voluntarily surrendered” to the U.S. embassy in Mexico.

The Associated Press, citing an unnamed member of Mexico’s security cabinet, reported that Wedding was the Canadian who visited the U.S. embassy.

In his remarks at a news conference, Patel described Wedding as a “modern-day Pablo Escobar,” referring to the Colombian cartel leader. U.S. authorities also compared him to Mexican drug trafficker Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán.

“When you go after a guy like Ryan Wedding, you need a united front,” Patel said, thanking Canadian and Mexican authorities for their help in the investigation.

Patel also thanked the FBI Hostage Rescue Team, which assisted in detaining Wedding.

In an interview with Vanity Fair, Patel praised the team, which had also participated in the capture of Venezuelan President Nicholas Maduro a few weeks earlier.

“This was a complex, high-stakes operation with zero margin for error,” Patel told the magazine.

“I was on the ground with our team in Mexico and saw extraordinary teamwork, precision and trust between our agents and partners in Mexico.”

Wedding’s aliases include “El Jefe,” “Giant,” “Public Enemy,” “James Conrad King” and “Jesse King,” the FBI said. He reportedly underwent plastic surgery to alter his appearance while on the run.

Authorities say he launched his criminal enterprise after his release from a U.S. federal prison in 2011, where he was serving time for cocaine distribution.

Authorities say he ordered dozens of killings around the world, including in the United States, Canada and Latin America.

Authorities say he lived in luxury in Mexico. In December, Mexican authorities announced they had seized $40 million worth of racing motorcycles belonging to Wedding. They also seized other valuables, including luxury paintings, artwork, drugs and two Olympic gold medals.

It is unclear who the medals belong to. Wedding represented Canada at the 2002 Olympic Games in Salt Lake City, but did not win any medals. He finished 24th in the men’s parallel giant slalom event.

In November, the FBI seized his rare 2002 Mercedes CLK-GTR, valued at $13 million.

Patel also spoke about the recent arrest of another man in Mexico who was on the FBI’s most wanted list.

American Alejandro Castillo was wanted for the murder of his ex-girlfriend. According to the FBI, he has been hiding in Mexico for nearly 10 years and will now be extradited to North Carolina to stand trial.