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Former Olympic snowboarder and FBI Most Wanted fugitive arrested
Ryan Wedding appears on an FBI wanted poster. The FBI announced his arrest Friday morning.
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Courtesy FBI
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FBI
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Topline:
The FBI has arrested a former Canadian Olympic snowboarder from their 10 Most Wanted Fugitives list. Ryan Wedding is accused of being a drug kingpin who used Los Angeles as his primary point of distribution.
Why it matters: Wedding is accused of running a drug trafficking operation that shipped narcotics from Colombia, through Mexico and Southern California, and ultimately throughout the United States and Canada. He is also accused of ordered the killing of a witness who was set to testify against him.
The backstory: FBI Director Kash Patel calls him "the largest narco trafficker in modern times." At a news conference announcing Wedding's arrest, Patel said "He's a modern-day El Chapo. He is a modern-day Pablo Escobar, and he thought he could evade justice."
LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell says their investigation into Wedding with the feds led to the seizure of more than 5,000 pounds of cocaine and more than $55 million in assets.
How we got here: Patel says Wedding has been wanted on charges for cocaine trafficking and murder since 2024. He competed for Canada in the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City.
What's next: Wedding is expected to make his first court appearance on Monday.
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