LOS ANGELES, Calif. – A Canadian former Olympic snowboarder and 15 other defendants have been charged in a 16-count superseding indictment for allegedly running and participating in a transnational drug trafficking operation that routinely shipped hundreds of kilograms of cocaine, from Colombia, through Mexico and Southern California, to Canada and other locations in the United States using big rigs, and whose leaders orchestrated multiple murders in furtherance of these drug crimes.
According to a press release from the United States Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California, Ryan James Wedding, 43, a Canadian citizen and former Olympian residing in Mexico, and Andrew Clark, 34, a Canadian citizen also residing in Mexico, were previously charged in the original indictment with running a continuing criminal enterprise, murder, and conspiring to possess, distribute, and export cocaine. Clark was arrested October 8 by Mexican law enforcement and is detained. Wedding is a fugitive.
“As alleged in the indictment, an Olympic athlete-turned-drug lord is now charged with leading a transnational organized crime group that engaged in cocaine trafficking and murder, including of innocent civilians,” said United States Attorney Martin Estrada. “My office’s mandate is to protect the public and stopping sophisticated and violent organized crime groups goes to the heart of that mission. We will continue to collaborate with our federal, local, and international law enforcement partners to bring these groups to justice.”
The first superseding indictment, unsealed on October 16, names 14 additional co-defendants. The superseding indictment alleges that Wedding, Clark, and others conspired to ship bulk quantities of cocaine – weighing hundreds of kilograms – from Southern California to Canada through a Canada-based drug transportation network run by Hardeep Ratte, 45, of Ontario, Canada, and Gurpreet Singh, 30, of Ontario, Canada, from approximately January 2024 to August 2024. The cocaine shipments were transported from Mexico to the Los Angeles area, where the cocaine trafficking organization’s operatives would store the cocaine in stash houses, before delivering it to the transportation network couriers for transportation to Canada using long-haul semi-trucks.
According to a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, as alleged in the superseding indictment, the organization resorted to violence – including multiple murders – to achieve its aims. Wedding and Clark allegedly directed the November 20, 2023, murders of two members of a family in Ontario, Canada, in retaliation for a stolen drug shipment that passed through Southern California. Another member of that family survived the shooting but was left with serious physical injuries. Wedding and Clark allegedly also ordered the murder of another victim on May 18, 2024, over a drug debt. Clark and Malik Damion Cunningham, 23, a resident of Canada, are charged with the April 1, 2024, murder of another victim in Ontario, Canada.”
Wedding, whose aliases include “El Jefe,” “Giant,” and “Public Enemy,” and who competed for Canada in the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, is the superseding indictment’s lead defendant. Wedding is charged with eight felonies: two counts of conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, one count of conspiracy to export cocaine, one count of leading a continuing criminal enterprise, three counts of murder in connection with a continuing criminal enterprise and drug crime, and one count of attempt to commit murder in connection with a continuing criminal enterprise and drug crime. Clark, whose aliases include “The Dictator,” is charged with the same eight felonies, plus an additional count of murder in connection with a continuing criminal enterprise and drug crime.
“The FBI remains steadfast in its mission to identify, target, and dismantle violent transnational organized crime syndicates in our communities,” said Akil Davis, the Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office. “Today, in collaboration with several local, federal, and international partners, we reaffirm our commitment to the American people by dismantling a violent organized crime network trafficking large quantities of drugs into the United States and orchestrating multiple homicides to eliminate the competition. The organization, led by former Olympian Ryan Wedding, cultivated a violent transnational drug trafficking empire that extended from Canada to the United States, Mexico, and Colombia. While key members of Wedding’s criminal enterprise were successfully apprehended this week, he remains at large. The FBI is offering a reward of up to $50,000 for any information leading to his arrest.”
“Organized Crime groups create immense harm in all our communities, not just with the poisons they ship, but through the tragic violence that inevitably comes with it,” said Liam Price, Royal Canadian Mounted Police’s Director General of International Special Services. “This network presented a threat to communities in Canada, the United States and overseas. That is why we, as Canada’s national police force, worked closely with the FBI and others to disrupt it. This operation demonstrates the value and the impact of close collaboration with amongst international partners to combat transnational organized crime, helping keep our communities safe. We will always look beyond our borders to where these threats originate and try to stop them at source.”
“The Wedding Drug Trafficking Organization and its unremitting, callous and greed-driven crimes has been operating for far too long, spanning several countries, from Colombia through Mexico, the U.S. and to Canada,” said Matthew Allen, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) Los Angeles Field Division. “They have triggered an avalanche of violent crimes, including brutal murders. Wedding, the Olympian snowboarder, went from navigating slopes to contouring a life of incessant crimes. DEA and our partners stand firmly in our resolve to dismantle his operation. I want to thank our DEA investigators and all our partners, including the FBI, LAPD, the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police International for their collaboration, experience and tremendous value that help embolden our mission.”
According to the release, during the investigation, law enforcement has seized more than one ton of cocaine, three firearms, dozens of rounds of ammunition, $255,400 in United States currency, and more than $3.2 million in cryptocurrency. According to the superseding indictment, in March 2024, the organization delivered a total of approximately 293 kilograms (646 pounds) of cocaine to representatives of Ratte and Singh for eventual shipment to and distribution in Canada. The following month, the organization attempted to deliver approximately 375.1 kilograms (827 pounds) of cocaine to representatives of Ratte and Singh for eventual transportation to Canada, but investigators interrupted the delivery and seized the cocaine. In total, several defendants possessed a total of approximately 1,800 kilograms (1.8 metric tons) of cocaine, according to the superseding indictment. One-thousand eight hundred kilograms of cocaine carries a street value between $23.4 and $25.2 million dollars in Los Angeles.
“This complex investigation spans multiple jurisdictions and agencies, with an alleged retaliation over stolen drugs tragically impacting an innocent family in Ontario, Canada,” said Marty Kearns, the Deputy Commissioner of the Ontario Provincial Police. “Today’s announcement reflects the tireless months of work undertaken by agencies in both Canada and the United States, as well as support from law enforcement in Mexico and Colombia. This is a testament to how collaboration and investigative diligence cross borders to identify perpetrators and bring crucial answers to victims and their families.”
Several of the defendants arrested are expected to make their court appearances within the coming week in Los Angeles, Michigan, and Miami.
“Today’s investigative outcomes stand as a powerful testament to the tireless dedication and collaboration of law enforcement agencies across Canada, the U.S., Mexico, and Colombia,” said Peel Regional Police Chief Nishan Duraiappah. “These investigative outcomes are important for the families who have endured tragic loss, casualties of criminal greed and a drug trafficking war. Peel Regional Police remains unwavering in its commitment to working alongside our global partners to bring those responsible for violent acts and homicides – both within Peel and beyond – to justice.”
If convicted, Wedding, Clark, and Cunningham would face a mandatory minimum penalty of life in federal prison on the murder and attempted murder charges. The continuing criminal enterprise charges also carry a mandatory minimum penalty of life in federal prison. The drug trafficking charges carry mandatory minimum penalties between 10 and 15 years in prison.
The FBI investigated this matter with the Los Angeles Police Department, the DEA Los Angeles, and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police – Federal Policing. In addition, significant assistance was provided by U.S. law enforcement partners, including Homeland Security Investigations – Detroit and United States Customs and Border Protection – Buffalo; Canadian law enforcement partners, including Niagara Regional Police Service, Ontario Provincial Police, Toronto Police Service, and Peel Regional Police; Mexican law enforcement partners, including the Attorney General’s Office (Fiscalía General de la República) and the Criminal Investigation Agency (Agencia de Investigación Criminal); and Colombian law enforcement partners, including Colombian National Police – Directorate of Criminal Investigation and Interpol, Special Interagency Investigation Group (Policía Nacional de Colombia – Dirección de Investigación Criminal e Interpol, Grupo Especial de Investigación Interagenciales). This investigation was conducted with the support of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF).
Assistant United States Attorneys Lyndsi Allsop and Maria Jhai of the Violent and Organized Crime Section and Ryan Waters of the Asset Forfeiture and Recovery Section are prosecuting this case. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs provided substantial assistance.
This case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
An indictment contains allegations that a defendant has committed a crime. Every defendant is presumed to be innocent until and unless proven guilty in court.
Dana Guthrie is an award-winning journalist who has been featured in multiple newspapers, books and magazines across the globe. She is currently based in the Atlanta, Georgia, area.
