Disgraced ex-Olympian Ryan Wedding — one of America’s most-wanted fugitives — was paraded in handcuffs as he landed in Southern California to face murder and drug charges.
He has been labelled a ‘modern-day Pablo Escobar’ and was understood to be living in Mexico under the protection of the infamous Sinaloa Cartel.
The Canadian snowboarder-turned-alleged drug kingpin touched down at Ontario International Airport in San Bernardino County, flanked by FBI agents as he was marched off the plane.
Sporting jeans, a black vest and a Los Angeles cap, Wedding kept his head down as federal authorities escorted him across the tarmac.
Wedding, who represented Canada in the 2002 Olympics, is suspected in multiple murders tied to his alleged El Chapo-esque narcotics empire, according to law enforcement.
The 44-year-old was on the run for over a decade, landing on the FBI’s list of 10 most wanted fugitives in March 2025.
The FBI announced earlier Friday that Wedding was captured in Mexico, calling the arrest a major blow to an international criminal network during a joint press conference alongside the LAPD, DEA and Canada’s RCMP.
“When you go after a guy like Ryan Wedding, it takes a united front, and that’s what you’re seeing here,” FBI Director Kash Patel said.
Wedding — who went by many aliases including “El Jefe,” “Giant,” “Public Enemy,” “James Conrad King” and “Jesse King” — turned himself in at the US embassy in Mexico, according to the Associated Press.
The alleged drug trafficker was slated to appear in court Monday to face multiple charges, including running a criminal enterprise, murder, conspiring to distribute cocaine and other crimes.
“To tell you how bad of a guy Ryan Wedding is, he went from an Olympic snowboarder to the largest narco traffickers in modern times,” Patel told reporters, calling Wedding a modern-day El Chapo.
Wedding had long ties to Southern California, where authorities said his alleged drug trafficking operation used Los Angeles as its main US hub.
The organization funneled hundreds of kilos of cocaine throughout the SoCal region, then on to Canada and other locations across the US, the feds said.
The FBI’s LA field office had announced a $10 million bounty for information leading to his capture. The feds later bumped the amount to $15 million, making it the largest sum for any perp on the FBI’s “most wanted fugitive” list.
Authorities have nabbed 36 other suspects tied to Wedding’s alleged drug empire, seizing piles of drugs, guns and cash — plus millions in luxury cars, motorcycles, artwork and jewelry, said Akil Davis, assistant director in charge of the FBI LA field office.
Officials were offering rewards of up to $2 million for tips that lead to even more arrests.
The feds dubbed the case “Operation Giant Slalom” — after the race Wedding competed in at the Salt Lake City Olympics in 2002, finishing 24th in the parallel giant slalom before he retired from the sport.
Wedding was previously arrested in San Diego in June 2008, convicted in federal court in 2009, and released from prison in 2011.
He competed internationally on Canada’s snowboarding team from 1997 to 2002.
This story was published in the New York Post and is reproduced with permission.
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