olympic
Authorities announced Thursday that a former Canadian Olympic snowboarder has been accused with operating a drug trafficking organization that killed four people and transported massive quantities of cocaine throughout the Americas.
Ryan James Wedding is a Canadian citizen who was living in Mexico and is a fugitive. The FBI is offering a $50,000 reward for information that leads to his apprehension and extradition.
According to US authorities, the 43-year-old is accused of a number of offenses in the US, including conspiracy to distribute cocaine, murder, and operating a criminal enterprise.
According to US investigators, Wedding’s organization used long-haul semi-trucks to transport massive supplies of cocaine from Colombia via Mexico and California to Canada and other US destinations. Wedding, who is also facing charges that date back years in Canada,
According to Martin Estrada, a US lawyer in Los Angeles, is one of 16 individuals charged in relation to a conspiracy that transported 60 tons of cocaine annually, and four of them are still at large.
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“He made the decision to become a prominent drug trafficker and a murderer,” Estrada informed reporters.
In connection with the case, twelve people were arrested in Florida, Michigan, Canada, Colombia, and Mexico, according to FBI special agent in charge in Los Angeles, Krysti Hawkins.
According to Canadian officials and federal court files, US police claim the group killed two members of a family in Canada as payback for a cocaine shipment that was stolen, and two other individuals in what they said was a case of mistaken identity. According to authorities,
In the course of their investigation, authorities claimed to have found cocaine, firearms, ammunition, cash, and over $3 million in cryptocurrencies.
According to officials, Wedding represented Canada at the Salt Lake City Winter Olympics in 2002.
Chris Leather, chief superintendent of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, stated that Wedding is facing separate narcotics trafficking accusations in Canada that go back to 2015.
According to Leather, “those charges are very much unresolved.”
According to federal records, Wedding was previously found guilty in the United States of conspiracy to distribute cocaine and received a jail sentence in 2010.
According to Estrada, US agents think that Wedding restarted narcotics trafficking after being freed and has been shielded by the Sinaloa Cartel in Mexico.
