Former Canadian Olympian Ryan Wedding is facing murder and drug charges in Los Angeles. Authorities say he ran a billion-dollar drug operation, using stash houses to smuggle Colombian cocaine. FBI
A key witness in the case against former Olympic snowboarder Ryan Wedding will no longer testify, an Ontario court revealed. Wedding, who is on the FBI’s most wanted list, faces serious charges in Los Angeles, including drug trafficking and murder.
U.S. prosecutors have warned about risks to witnesses, claiming Wedding still has a network of contract killers. He is accused of running a billion-dollar drug operation that transported Colombian cocaine through stash houses.
During a brief court hearing in Toronto, a lawyer representing one of Wedding’s co-defendants confirmed that the prosecution’s central witness had withdrawn from the trial. He did not provide a reason or reveal the identity of the witness.
Reports suggest that this witness had worked with Wedding for over a decade in drug trafficking and had agreed to cooperate with U.S. investigators in 2023. However, new concerns about safety have emerged. According to a report, the witness was recently killed in Colombia, though officials have not confirmed this.
Fears Over Witness Safety
Last month, U.S. prosecutors requested a protective order for documents that could expose witnesses in the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Maria Jhai stressed that Wedding is still at large and may have access to the same encrypted communication tools and hitmen used in past crimes.
Authorities believe Wedding and his second-in-command, Andrew Clark, ordered at least four murders in Ontario. Among the victims was an Indian family who was mistakenly targeted in a shooting. "Witness safety and information security should be paramount as the case moves forward," Jhai stated.
The image shows Gurpreet Singh (left) and Hardeep Ratte. They are among 15 co-defendants linked to Ryan Wedding in a U.S. indictment revealed last October. CBC News
The Investigation Continues
Court records reveal that the key witness met with Wedding and Clark in Mexico City in early 2024. They reportedly discussed transporting large shipments of cocaine using a Canadian trucking network. The following month, the witness met with two other co-defendants, Gurpreet Singh and Hardeep Ratte, in a meeting secretly recorded by the RCMP. During the conversation, Ratte allegedly agreed to move cocaine shipments for Wedding at a fixed rate of $220,000 per load.
Ratte, who is in custody, appeared in court via video call. At one point, he smiled and waved at someone on the screen.
The Fugitive Olympian
Wedding, originally from Thunder Bay, Ontario, represented Canada in snowboarding at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City. After his sports career, he moved to British Columbia and later to Montreal. Authorities suspect he may now be hiding in Mexico.
Several of Wedding’s alleged associates, including Singh and Ratte, were arrested in Toronto last year and are facing extradition to the United States. The case remains ongoing as officials try to track down Wedding and dismantle his suspected criminal empire.
