FBI Arrests Former Olympic Snowboarder and Top Cocaine Trafficker in Crypto-Linked Case
US authorities have arrested former Canadian Olympic snowboarder Ryan Wedding, ending a years-long worldwide manhunt for a determine investigators describe as a significant cocaine trafficker who relied on cryptocurrency to maneuver and conceal illicit earnings.
Key Takeaways:
- Former Olympian Ryan Wedding was arrested in Mexico and extradited to the US after years on the FBI’s Most Wanted 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, 44, was taken into custody in Mexico late Thursday and transferred to the United States on Friday, in accordance with US officers.
The former athlete, who competed for Team Canada on the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, had been listed among the many FBI’s Ten Most Wanted fugitives, with a reward of as much as $15 million supplied for info resulting in his seize.
Former Olympic Snowboarder Faces US Charges in Global Drug Case
US Attorney General Pam Bondi stated Wedding, whom she described as a “onetime Olympian snowboarder-turned alleged violent cocaine kingpin,” will face federal expenses in the US associated to drug trafficking, homicide, and working a legal enterprise spanning a number of nations.
FBI Director Kash Patel confirmed the arrest in a publish on X, crediting cooperation with Mexican authorities for finding Wedding after greater than a decade on the run.
Investigators allege that Wedding performed a senior position in cocaine distribution networks tied to Mexico’s Sinaloa Cartel, overseeing shipments from Colombia into the United States and Canada.
According to US officers, the operation generated greater than $1 billion yearly in unlawful proceeds at its peak.
The US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned Wedding in November, accusing his group of utilizing cryptocurrency to maneuver and launder drug earnings.
In its discover, the Treasury stated digital belongings have been used to obscure the circulate of funds and conceal massive sums derived from narcotics trafficking.
Mexico’s Security Secretary Omar García Harfuch stated Wedding voluntarily surrendered on the U.S. Embassy earlier than being handed over to the FBI.
Patel later instructed reporters that Wedding had been hiding in Mexico for over 10 years and was believed to be below cartel safety.
Wedding arrived Friday at Ontario International 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 belongings linked to the alleged legal enterprise, and indicated additional arrests might comply with because the investigation continues.
Ryan Wedding’s Earlier Cocaine Case Predates Latest US Charges
This shouldn’t be Wedding’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. According to Chainalysis, illicit cryptocurrency addresses received a record $154 billion in 2025, a pointy enhance from the 12 months 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 by an alleged phishing and social engineering scheme.
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