Ryan Wedding, a former Canadian Olympic snowboarder who allegedly became the head of a billion-dollar drug trafficking organization, pleaded not guilty to multiple charges against him on Monday and was ordered detained while his case proceeds.
Wedding, who authorities say was in hiding for more than a decade and on the FBI's “Ten Most Wanted Fugitives” list, was arrested last week. He faces 17 felonies in two separate indictments.
During the court hearing at the Ronald Reagan Federal Building and Courthouse in Santa Ana, Wedding, wearing a beige prison uniform and black Crocs, scanned the gallery and occasionally smiled. Burly and tattooed, the 6-foot-3 Wedding towered over his attorney and the deputy bailiffs standing guard in the courtroom.
Federal Judge John D. Early ordered Wedding jailed without bail and set his next hearing for Feb. 11.
The judge set a tentative trial date in March, although Wedding's attorney, Anthony Colombo, said the case would likely take longer to develop.
Colombo did not defend his client's release Monday afternoon, later citing “the whirlwind” Wedding had experienced since his arrest.
“It takes time to establish the guarantees, to have the information for the court to establish that there is a condition or combination of conditions that could secure his release,” Colombo told reporters. “We were not in a position to do that today and we anticipate addressing it at a later date.”
Colombo said he first met his client several days ago, after his arrival in the United States, and described him as “in good spirits.” Colombo disputed claims by federal authorities that Wedding had gone into hiding in Mexico.
“Hiding and living somewhere are two different things,” Colombo said. “I would say it is alive, the government can define it in its own way.”
Colombo added that his client was detained and “did not turn himself in.”
Wedding, known by many aliases, including “The Boss” and “Public Enemy,” is accused of becoming a major cocaine trafficker to Canada and the United States and a ruthless leader who ordered murders, including that of a witness in a 2024 federal narcotics case against him. The alleged order resulted in the victim being shot to death at a restaurant in Medellín, Colombia, in January 2025, prosecutors said.
The former Olympic snowboarder was charged in 2024 with running a continuing criminal enterprise, various drug trafficking charges and directing the murders of two family members in Canada in retaliation for a stolen drug shipment.
“Just to tell you how bad Ryan Wedding is, he went from being an Olympic snowboarder to being the biggest drug dealer of modern times,” Patel said at a news conference Friday announcing the arrest. “He is a modern El Chapo, he is a modern Pablo Escobar. And he thought he could evade justice.”
When asked if authorities were comparing his client to El Chapo and Pablo Escobar, Colombo said: “I think it's exaggerated, that's their interpretation.”
Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell said last week that Wedding's alleged global drug trafficking organization “used Los Angeles as its primary distribution point.”
Akil Davis, assistant director in charge of the FBI's Los Angeles field office, said after Wedding's capture that his alleged organization shipped approximately 60 metric tons of cocaine through Southern California on its way to Canada.
Authorities have detained 36 people in connection with their role in the transnational organization and the US Treasury Department has sanctioned 19 people, including Wedding, according to Davis.
Lawyer. Gen. Pam Bondi previously said Wedding's operation was responsible for generating more than $1 billion a year in illegal drug profits.
Wedding competed for her home country, Canada, at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City.
Colombo, an experienced attorney, previously represented Rubén Oseguera González, also known as “El Menchito,” son of Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, “El Mencho,” the leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel.
Oseguera González was sentenced last year to life in prison plus 30 consecutive years for his role in a major drug trafficking conspiracy.
