Ryan Wedding, a suspected cocaine kingpin evading authorities, allegedly orchestrated the killings of rival drug traffickers and an FBI informant he deemed a “rat.” Reports suggest he even offered a $5 million reward for the informant’s capture. Now, there are speculations about Wedding potentially cooperating with the FBI.
Speculations arose regarding Wedding’s ties to the FBI after Mexico’s security minister, Omar García Harfuch, revealed on social media that a Canadian resembling Wedding had surrendered to U.S. authorities at the embassy. Wedding, originally from Thunder Bay, Ontario, was among the FBI’s 10 most-wanted fugitives, labeled by the agency’s director as a major drug trafficker.
According to details from a Vanity Fair article shared by FBI director Kash Patel, Mexican authorities arrested Wedding before he was handed over to the FBI following intense negotiations.
Wedding, a former Olympic snowboarder, had been apprehended by ex-FBI agent Brett Kalina in 2008 for attempting to buy cocaine for a criminal group in Vancouver. While serving time in a U.S. federal prison until 2011, Wedding purportedly established crucial underworld connections, including with Montreal-born drug trafficker Jonathan Acebedo-Garcia, who later became an FBI informant and was fatally shot.
Wedding, accused by U.S. prosecutors of being a high-ranking cartel member, potentially poses a threat to many individuals, as per Kalina. He is set to appear in a Los Angeles court, facing charges related to murder, drug trafficking, and witness intimidation, carrying a life sentence upon conviction.
If Wedding cooperates by sharing insights on global drug-smuggling networks, there could be room for negotiation, Kalina suggested. Authorities revealed that Wedding’s criminal enterprise facilitated the transportation of approximately 60 tons of cocaine annually to California, subsequently distributing it across the U.S. and Canada.
The RCMP emphasized the vast reach of Wedding’s alleged drug operation, involving methamphetamine, cocaine, fentanyl, and heroin trafficking. Wedding also faces unresolved charges in Montreal related to a cocaine-importing conspiracy.
Moreover, U.S. investigators may seek information on Wedding’s connections with Mexican officials, aiming to uncover his high-profile relationships within Mexico. The U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned several of Wedding’s associates, including a Mexican individual known as “the General,” for aiding Wedding and locating targets.
Wedding’s downfall resulted from informants turning against him, leading to his recent arrest after facing charges for Acebedo-Garcia’s murder. Despite the developments, Kalina suspects Wedding has remained silent so far.