Ryan Wedding, a former Canadian Olympic snowboarder, has been charged with masterminding the murder of a federal witness in Colombia, according to a statement from U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi on November 19, 2025. The murder, which took place in January 2025, was allegedly orchestrated to prevent the witness’s extradition to the United States.
Wedding, who competed in the 2002 Winter Games, is accused of running a transnational drug network moving about 60 tonnes of cocaine per year. He faces charges of witness tampering and murder following the shooting of a witness at a Medellín restaurant, where the victim was shot five times in the head.
According to authorities, Wedding placed a $5 million bounty on the victim and used a Canadian crime news website, The Dirty News, to publish the witness’s photo and location. The FBI has since seized the website.
Among the 15 people charged in the indictment is Deepal Paradkar, an Ontario defence lawyer. Paradkar is accused of advising Wedding on the murder and helping him avoid extradition by providing confidential court documents. Paradkar was arrested in Canada on November 18.
The FBI has increased its reward for Wedding’s capture to $15 million, listing him among its Ten Most Wanted. Wedding is believed to be hiding in Mexico, under the protection of the Sinaloa cartel.
Pam Bondi emphasized, “Whether you are a street-level drug dealer or an international drug kingpin, we are coming for you. We will find you and you will be accountable.”
