Ryan Wedding Faces Allegations of Hiring Cartel for Informant's Murder
U.S. prosecutors have leveled serious accusations against Ryan Wedding, a 44-year-old former Olympic snowboarder, alleging he hired members of a notorious Colombian organized crime syndicate to kidnap, torture, and ultimately kill an FBI informant. The informant, Jonathan Acebedo-Garcia, was shot five times in the head while dining with friends at a restaurant in Medellin, Colombia, in January 2025.
Details of the Alleged Assassination Plot
According to court documents, Wedding is believed to have placed a bounty of up to US$5 million on Acebedo-Garcia after discovering his former associate was cooperating with federal authorities. Initially, the plan involved kidnapping and torturing the victim, but it was later revised to an execution-style slaying using a silencer-equipped gunman. The group allegedly hired for this task was La Oficina de Envigado, a syndicate with origins in the 1980s providing enforcement for the Medellín Cartel, including the infamous Pablo Escobar.
Today, La Oficina is involved in international drug trafficking, money laundering, extortion, and murder for hire, as noted by the U.S. Justice Department. Prosecutors claim Wedding paid the group approximately US$500,000 in cryptocurrency for the killing, though he allegedly boasted of a higher payment of US$2.5 million.
Expanded Surveillance and Legal Charges
New evidence suggests Wedding utilized spyware to track cellphones in Canada and Mexico, specifically targeting Acebedo-Garcia and others. He allegedly showed an associate a screenshot of this spyware in action, displaying a Montreal number being monitored in real time. Wedding was arrested in Mexico in January 2026 and has pleaded not guilty to 17 drug and murder charges.
Law enforcement officials accuse him of moving up to 60 tons of cocaine through multiple countries and collaborating with Mexico's Sinaloa Cartel. Additional charges include orchestrating the 2023 murders of two Canadian family members over stolen drugs and ordering another killing related to a drug debt. Wedding was previously on the FBI's Most Wanted Fugitives list, with a $15 million reward for his capture.
Involvement of Legal Counsel and Associates
Prosecutors have also implicated Toronto lawyer Deepak Paradkar, alleging he counseled Wedding and his associate Andrew Clark to eliminate Acebedo-Garcia to undermine the FBI's case. Paradkar, released on $5 million bail in December 2025, has denied any wrongdoing. Clark, now an FBI informant, is expected to testify against Wedding in an upcoming trial scheduled for later this year in Los Angeles.
This case highlights the intersection of international crime, drug trafficking, and legal proceedings, with Wedding's journey from Olympian to alleged drug lord drawing significant attention from authorities in both the U.S. and Canada.
