Former Olympic snowboarder Ryan Wedding has been consistently in the public eye in one way or another, for better or for worse, for a large part of his life. Now, the man dubbed the “modern-day El-Chapo” has been caught and will be made to answer for his crimes.
After being placed on the FBI’s 10 most wanted list in 2025, there has been a concerted effort to lock him down. He has finally been arrested in Mexico City, bringing his years on the run to a close. He is wanted on suspicion of running a multimillion-dollar drug empire and the murder of at least four men.
He was named in a 2024 indictment that claimed he was part of a drug ring that was running cocaine from Colombia, through Mexico, and into the US and Canada. It was revealed that Wedding was, in fact, the mastermind behind the whole operation. The sportsman had hung up his snowboard and went down a new path.
He had managed to evade capture up until now, when he was finally caught in Mexico City. It was rumored that the ex-Olympic snowboarder had been harbored by the Sinaloa Cartel. However, due to the combined efforts of the FBI, Mexican law enforcement, and the DOJ, he was brought in.
Now, Wedding is waiting to be extradited to the US to stand trial for running one of the biggest drug trafficking rings of modern times. He will be held in custody over the weekend and be made to stand trial on Monday. The court case will be a long one with multiple witnesses and evidence to process.
“While we’re happy about this victory, we have a lot of work ahead of us to prosecute this case and continue our investigation. I want to emphasize; we are still seeking multiple individuals wanted for their roles in this organization. The State Department is still offering a US$2 million reward for information leading to additional arrests.”
The hunt for Wedding really began when several murders were linked back to him, his operation, and his partner in crime. The alleged murders were of direct rivals to Wedding’s supposed drug empire. Three of the shootings occurred in Canada. One of the victims was a direct witness set to testify against him.
Along with his partner, Andrew Clark, numerous murders have been tied to their operation and its protection. However, Clark was arrested in 2024. He was extradited to the US in 2025 to face charges. Now, both of them are behind bars.
This story originally appeared on Screenrant
