Mexican authorities, working with U.S. and Canadian partners, seized dozens of luxury motorcycles this month believed to belong to former Canadian Olympian Ryan James Wedding; the fleet is estimated at $40 million. Raids in Mexico City also recovered vehicles, artwork, two Olympic medals and narcotics. Wedding, on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted list, faces multiple U.S. indictments alleging he runs a large cocaine distribution network and ordered violent attacks; the DOJ has boosted the reward for information to $15 million.
Dozens Of Luxury Motorcycles Worth $40M Seized In Mexico Linked To Former Olympian Ryan Wedding
Motorcycles believed to be owned by Ryan Wedding seized by Mexican authorities. (FBI)
Mexican authorities this month seized dozens of high‑powered, high‑end motorcycles believed to belong to Ryan James Wedding, the 44‑year‑old Canadian former Olympic snowboarder who U.S. prosecutors accuse of leading an international drug‑trafficking organization. The FBI’s Los Angeles office said the bikes are valued at an estimated $40 million and released photos of the seized fleet.
The seizure was part of a coordinated operation involving the FBI, the Los Angeles Police Department and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, according to U.S. law‑enforcement officials. Mexican authorities have not disclosed the exact locations where the motorcycles were found.
Separately, Mexico’s Secretariat of Security and Citizen Protection reported that raids at four addresses in Mexico City yielded two vehicles, works of art, two Olympic medals, narcotics and other items. Officials have not publicly identified whose Olympic medals were recovered.
Who Is Ryan Wedding?
Wedding represented Canada at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, finishing 24th in the men’s giant parallel slalom. He has since been accused by U.S. authorities of running an extensive cocaine distribution network and is listed on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives.
Prosecutors say Wedding began trafficking around 2008 after a trip to San Diego and, following a conviction for conspiracy to distribute cocaine and a release from prison in December 2011, allegedly reestablished himself as a major international drug distributor.
Charges, Allegations And Reward
Federal indictments filed in Los Angeles include multiple drug‑related counts. In November, prosecutors added charges alleging Wedding ordered a hit on a witness and recruited assassins to kill rival traffickers. Authorities say his organization is responsible for importing roughly 60 metric tons of cocaine a year into Los Angeles—a claim made by U.S. prosecutors and law‑enforcement officials.
The U.S. Department of Justice recently increased the reward for information leading to Wedding’s arrest and conviction to $15 million. FBI leadership has compared him to notorious traffickers in describing the scale and violence associated with the alleged organization.
Wedding is believed to be hiding in Mexico and—according to U.S. authorities—operating with the protection of the Sinaloa cartel. Investigations and international cooperation between Mexican and U.S. law enforcement remain active as authorities pursue leads and potential additional seizures.
Note: All claims in this report are drawn from statements by law‑enforcement agencies and prosecutors. Wedding is accused but has not been convicted on all allegations described here.
