Canadian and US authorities have intensified their hunt for former Olympic snowboarder Ryan Wedding, who has been added to the FBI’s list of 10 most-wanted fugitives.
The high-profile announcement came on Thursday, along with a reward of up to $10 million USD for information leading to his arrest.
Wedding, 43, is facing US federal charges that include three murders, a cocaine trafficking conspiracy, and what prosecutors label “leading a continuing criminal enterprise.”
Wedding is also wanted by the RCMP on separate drug charges dating back to 2015.
Until now, a $50,000 reward had been on the offer, but the FBI and US State Department dramatically increased the bounty to $10 million USD in an effort to draw out new leads.
Authorities believe Wedding may be living in Mexico under the protection of the Sinaloa cartel.
However, it has not been ruled out that Wedding could be in Canada or somewhere in Central America.
Akil Davis, assistant director in charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles field office, told reporters Wedding “has connections in very high places,” warning that he remains both “wealthy and dangerous.”
A senior RCMP official said it is “a safe assumption” that Wedding and his accomplices could be linked to additional killings across North America.
Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Police Department alleged Wedding’s network was using the city as a transport hub.
Officials said massive quantities of drugs, including an estimated five metric tonnes of fentanyl per month, were funnelled to markets in both the US and Canada.
In a statement, LAPD Deputy Chief Alan Hamilton stressed that the reward increase signals there is “nowhere safe for Wedding to hide.”
Authorities also released a new photo of the suspect wearing a blue baseball cap, gold watch, and a designer T-shirt.
While they declined to disclose where the image was taken, they confirmed it is the most recent available snapshot of the fugitive.
Court documents suggest Wedding continues to traffic drugs while in hiding.
His alleged second-in-command Andrew Clark was captured by the Mexican navy last October in Guadalajara and extradited to the US last week.
Acting US attorney Joseph T. McNally said Clark, 34, was inexplicably granted bail in Mexico “in recent weeks” but was soon recaptured in a follow-up police operation.
In all, 10 Canadians have been charged in the case, which has shed light on an allegedly sophisticated drug ring.
Prosecutors say Wedding and Clark employed hit men to eliminate rivals, including an Indian couple shot in Caledon, ON, in November.
Their daughter, who was also targeted, survived despite being shot 13 times.
Authorities believe the family was attacked in error, caught in a feud over a stolen cocaine shipment.
The FBI’s key witness is a Canadian Colombian drug trafficker Jonathan Acebedo-Garcia, who was killed in Medellin, Colombia, in January.
The RCMP say Wedding’s group has been known to threaten or intimidate witnesses.
Liam Price, head of the RCMP’s International Special Services, declined to give details, but noted “this organization does pose a risk to public safety.”
With the reward now standing at $10 million, US officials say the funds come entirely from the American government.
The State Department statement said this is part of a “unified effort” with Canada and Mexico to bring the fugitive snowboarder-turned-alleged kingpin to justice.
