USA
The former athlete, considered by the FBI to be a modern version of ‘El Chapo’ Guzmán, had been hiding in Mexico for more than a decade.
The Canadian ex-Olympian Ryan Weddingone of the most wanted drug traffickers in the United States, was arrested Thursday night in Mexico, the FBI reported this Friday.
“Ryan James Wedding was arrested in Mexico last night. He is being transferred from Mexico to the United States through the FBI to face justice,” the director of the police agency announced in a statement. Kash Patel, who is in Mexico to meet with the Mexican Secretary of Public Security, Omar García Harfuch.
The drug trafficker had been hiding in Mexico for more than a decade and since 2024 he faces charges of cocaine trafficking and murder in the United Stateswhere he was one of the FBI’s most wanted fugitives.
Wedding represented Canada in the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City (Utah, United States) in the mode of ‘snowboard‘.
Patel stated that His arrest was “the result of great cooperation and teamwork with the Government of Mexico,” led by the president, Claudia Sheinbaumwhom he thanked for his “great cooperation.” He also said it was achieved “thanks to the leadership and commitment” of US President Donald Trump to “global law enforcement.”
In November 2025, US authorities They increased the reward from 10 to 15 million dollars for information that would facilitate his capture.
The FBI director then stated that Wedding was one of the worst drug traffickers in North America. “Make no mistake, Ryan Wedding is the modern version of Pablo Escobar. He is the modern version of ‘El Chapo’ Guzmán“he stated.
According to the attorney general of the United States, Pam Bondi, Wedding is the leader of a transnational criminal organization that traffics dozens of tons of cocaine each year to the United States and Canada, from Colombia and through Mexico.
Wedding went from being an Olympic athlete in 2002 to being arrested and sentenced in 2010 to 48 months in prison for trying to transport 24 kilos of cocaine from San Diego to Canada (USA).
After serving his sentence, Wedding was extradited in 2011 to Canada, from where tried to organize the transportation of tons of drugs for the Sinaloa cartel, the organization of ‘El Chapo’.
When he was about to be arrested by the Canadian Police, Wedding fled to Mexico from where he ordered the murder of several people and directed his network of drug trafficking.