TLDR
- The former Olympic snowboarder, Ryan Wedding, is now the target of a $10 million reward from the FBI for his alleged involvement in leading an international drug smuggling syndicate.
- There are claims that Wedding utilized Tether (USDT) to disguise proceeds from cocaine and fentanyl drug trafficking activities.
- Wedding is allegedly behind orchestrating several murders, notably including an attack on a family in Ontario in 2023.
- The ex-Olympian is thought to be in hiding in Mexico, reportedly receiving protection from the infamous Sinaloa cartel.
- Should he be found guilty, Wedding is looking at a life sentence in prison, with additional charges that could add another decade or two behind bars.
The FBI has announced A reward of $10 million is being offered for tips leading to the arrest of Ryan Wedding, a former Canadian Olympic snowboarder accused of using cryptocurrency channels to manage a significant cocaine trafficking operation.
On Thursday, U.S. authorities placed Wedding on their Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list. The substantial reward is part of the State Department’s 'Narcotics Rewards Program' aimed at ramping up efforts to capture him.
Akil Davis from the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office remarked on how Wedding shifted from Olympic snowboarding to distributing cocaine in U.S. cities and Canada.
Allegations against the former athlete surfaced first in October 2024 when the Department of Justice released charges involving him and 15 other individuals.
An indictment suggests Wedding was the mastermind behind a drug trafficking ring moving cocaine from Colombia, passing through Mexico, to reach the United States and Canada.
Federal agencies have accused Wedding of smuggling large quantities of cocaine and fentanyl, using violence to safeguard their operations in North America.
One pivotal claim in the case is Wedding's reported use of cryptocurrency, particularly Tether (USDT), to effectively cleanse proceeds from drug transactions.
From Athlete to Fugitive
Employing this method enabled Wedding to sidestep conventional banking systems. Meanwhile, Tether has remained silent on requests to comment regarding its currency's usage in illegal activities.
The case casts light on a rising trend where criminal entities are resorting to stablecoins. A November study indicated Mexican drug cartels, notably the Sinaloa cartel, increasingly turn to Tether for cross-border money transfers.
When their business faced hindrances, Wedding’s operation purportedly resorted to violence. Alongside partner Andrew Clark, Wedding stands accused of arranging multiple murders.
A prominent incident allegedly involved targeting a family in Ontario, Canada in 2023, supposedly to ward off threats to their narcotics enterprise.
While Clark has been apprehended in Mexico, Wedding remains on the lam, possibly under the Sinaloa cartel's protection there.
If caught, Wedding would face severe repercussions, including a guaranteed life sentence in federal prison, should he be found guilty of heading a nonstop criminal enterprise.
Supplementary charges of murder and attempted murder carry stiff minimum sentences of 20 years, and the drug trafficking accusations could tack on another 10 to 15 years to his time.
On top of the State Department’s $10 million reward, the FBI has appended an additional $50,000 incentive, bringing the potential payout for information leading to Wedding's apprehension to over $10 million.
This situation is unfolding as authorities are increasingly scrutinizing the role of cryptocurrencies in criminal undertakings. In January 2025, Tether partnered with Tron and TRM Labs to establish the T3 Financial Crime Unit.
This collaboration has already halted over $126 million in USDT tied to illicit activities. They work in conjunction with global enforcement to thwart the misuse of stablecoins by crime networks.
The U.S. government has confiscated millions in USDT connected to cocaine trafficking, and ongoing probes continue to expose cartel methods utilizing cryptocurrency to shield illegal gains.
