Ryan Wedding arrested: 7 key facts to know about Olympic snowboarder turned drug kingpin

Ryan Wedding, a former Olympic snowboarder for Canada, was arrested on Friday

Published on: Jan 23, 2026, 21:28:10 IST

By Yash Nitish Bajaj

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Ryan Wedding, a former Olympic snowboarder for Canada, was arrested on Friday on charges related to multinational drug trafficking and the killing of a federal witness. The 44-year-old was on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list, and authorities had offered a $15 million reward for information leading to his arrest and conviction.

Ryan Wedding was arrested in Mexico, as it was revealed on Friday (REUTERS)

FBI Director Kash Patel and Attorney General Pam Bondi are expected to release details about Wedding's arrest soon. An official told the Associated Press and NBC News that the fugitive was apprehended in Mexico, where the FBI released a new photo of him last month and said it was believed to have been taken over the summer.

7 key facts to know about Ryan Wedding

Olympic career

Wedding represented Canada in snowboarding at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah. He competed in the men's parallel giant slalom event, where he finished in 24th place and did not win a medal.

Post-Olympic career

After his Olympic appearance, Ryan Wedding gave up competitive snowboarding and became known for his alleged involvement in transnational drug trafficking.

Ryan Wedding's wife and children

In November last year, the US Department of the Treasury named Wedding's wife, Miryam Andrea Castillo Moreno, as a top financial enabler in his trafficking operations. It is unclear whether the two have children.

FBI's Most Wanted and a $15 million reward

Wedding was on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list. In November last year, the FBI and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), declared a reward of $15 million for information leading to his capture.

Comparison to Pablo Escobar

FBI Director Kash Patel had compared Ryan Wedding to the late Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar and Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, the leader of Mexico’s Sinaloa cartel.

Ryan Wedding charges

Wedding was charged in 2024 with running a drug ring that used semitrucks to move cocaine between Colombia, Mexico, Southern California and Canada. Authorities said his aliases included "El Jefe,” “Public Enemy” and “James Conrad Kin.”

The Dirty News

AG Bondi announced that Wedding had also been indicted on charges of orchestrating the killing of a witness in Colombia to help him avoid extradition to the US.

Authorities said Wedding and co-conspirators used a Canadian website called “The Dirty News” to post a photograph of the witness so he could be identified and killed. The witness was then followed to a restaurant in Medellín in January and shot in the head.

Wedding faces separate drug trafficking charges in Canada that date back to 2015, according to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

(With inputs from the Associated Press_

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Yash Nitish Bajaj
Yash Bajaj is a Chief Content Producer with a strong foundation in US coverage, digital strategy, and audience-focused storytelling. As part of the US Desk at Hindustan Times, he covers a wide range of topics - from American politics to sports (NFL, NBA, derbies, MLB and more). Before joining Hindustan Times, Yash served as Deputy News Editor at Times Now, where he oversaw international coverage and led a team of six. In this role, he significantly expanded global traffic through strategic planning, SEO-driven content execution, and meticulous trend tracking across platforms. He is experienced in managing high-pressure breaking-news shifts, coordinating live coverage, and building newsroom systems that improve speed, accuracy, and reach. Prior to Times Now, Yash held a position at Opoyi, where he headed the Sports and US news team. He developed broad editorial strategies, guided reporters across multiple beats, and played a key role in recruiting and training new talent. His responsibilities also extended to social media management and experimenting with innovative content formats. A passionate NFL fan, Yash is a die-hard supporter of the Cincinnati Bengals and has followed Joe Burrow closely since his college days at LSU. Whether breaking down top players' latest performance, analyzing team performances, or tracking roster moves, he brings the same dedication and sharp storytelling to his sports coverage as he does to American politics and breaking news. When he’s not writing, Yash can often be found watching games or debating the latest NFL storylines with fellow fans. Yash holds a Bachelor of Mass Media (Journalism) from HR College, Mumbai University. His interests extend well beyond the newsroom: he is an enthusiastic explorer of AI tools, a movie buff with an ever-growing watchlist, and someone who enjoys unraveling conspiracy theories for fun.Read More

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