{"id":301726,"date":"2025-11-19T19:26:12","date_gmt":"2025-11-19T19:26:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/301726\/"},"modified":"2025-11-19T19:26:12","modified_gmt":"2025-11-19T19:26:12","slug":"office-of-public-affairs-10-arrested-in-federal-indictment-charging-olympic-athlete-turned-cocaine-trafficker-with-ordering-murder-of-witness-in-january","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/301726\/","title":{"rendered":"Office of Public Affairs | 10 Arrested in Federal Indictment Charging Olympic Athlete-Turned-Cocaine Trafficker with Ordering Murder of Witness in January"},"content":{"rendered":"

WASHINGTON \u2013 Ten defendants have been arrested \u2013 and 11 total are in custody \u2013 pursuant to a nine-count federal grand jury indictment<\/a> unsealed today charging a former Olympic snowboarder now on the FBI\u2019s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives List, a Canadian criminal barrister, a reggaeton musician, a would-be gangland news website operator, and others in connection with the January 31 murder in Colombia of a federal witness in a separate criminal case.<\/p>\n

Ryan James Wedding, 44, a Canadian national residing in Mexico, the case\u2019s lead defendant, is charged with overseeing the operations of a criminal enterprise \u2013 including by engaging in witness intimidation tactics such as murder \u2013 and enriching himself with the enterprise\u2019s laundered drug proceeds. In March 2025, Wedding was placed on the FBI\u2019s List<\/a> of Ten Most Wanted Fugitives. There is an increased $15 million reward for information leading to his arrest and\/or prosecution.<\/p>\n

The following defendants were arrested Tuesday as part of the second phase of a law enforcement action entitled \u201cOperation Giant Slalom\u201d:<\/p>\n

Deepak Balwant Paradkar, 62, of Thornhill, Ontario, Canada;Atna Ohna, 40, of Laval, Qu\u00e9bec, Canada;Gursewak Singh Bal, 31, of Mississauga, Ontario, Canada;Allistair Chapman, 33, of Calgary, Alberta, Canada;Ahmad Nabil Zitoun, 35, of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada;Carmen Yelinet Valoyes Florez, 47, of Bogot\u00e1, Colombia;Yulieth Katherine Tejada, 36, of Orlando, Florida, who is legal permanent resident from Colombia;Edwin Basora-Hernandez, 31, of Montr\u00e9al;Wilson Riascos, 45, of Cali, Colombia; andRolan Sokolovski, 37, of Toronto.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhether you\u2019re a kingpin or a dealer on the street, anyone who sells drugs to our kids will be arrested and prosecuted,\u201d said Attorney General Pamela Bondi. \u201cRyan Wedding controls one of the most prolific and violent drug trafficking organizations in this world and works closely with the Sinaloa Cartel. We will not rest until his name is taken off the FBI\u2019s Top 10 Most Wanted List, and his narco-trafficking organization lies dismantled.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe murder of a witness in Colombia earlier this year was a cruel, cold-blooded act that could not and did not go unanswered,\u201d said First Assistant United States Attorney Bill Essayli of the Central District of California. \u201cThis week\u2019s arrests underscore our resolve to root out and punish the wrongdoers involved in this criminal organization and serve as a warning for drug lord Ryan Wedding: If convicted, you will never see the outside of a prison ever again.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cToday\u2019s announcement is a culmination of the steadfast work of the FBI and our partners around the world to identify and dismantle violent gang and drug organizations,\u201d said FBI Director Kash Patel. \u201cRyan Wedding and his associates allegedly imported tons of cocaine each year from Colombia through Mexico and onto the streets of U.S. communities. His criminal activities and violent actions will not be tolerated, and this is a clear signal that the FBI will use our resources and expertise to find Ryan Wedding and bring him and his associates to justice.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cRyan Wedding\u2019s athletic drive snowballed into a life of violence and, instead of conquering mountains, he mastered a deadly drug distribution enterprise and will continue to order murders while he enjoys protection by his cartel associates and others,\u201d said Akil Davis, the Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI\u2019s Los Angeles Field Office. \u201c\u2018Operation Giant Slalom\u2019 is a dynamic international investigation and involves dedicated partners collaborating in multiple countries with the shared goal of capturing Wedding, finding justice for several murder victims \u2013 including a cooperating witness \u2013 and ridding communities in North America of deadly drugs.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo one, not even a former Olympian, is above the law,\u201d said Senior Bureau Official Chris Landberg of the Department of State\u2019s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs. \u201cWe are increasing our reward offer to up to $15 million for information leading to the arrest and\/or conviction of Ryan Wedding. We are also offering rewards of up to $2 million each for the assassins behind the murder of his associate in Colombia.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cToday we\u2019re exposing the network of associates and enablers behind Ryan Wedding \u2013 one of the most notorious criminals and narcotraffickers still evading justice,\u201d said Treasury Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence John Hurley. \u201cTreasury is joining with the FBI and the Department of Justice to cut Wedding and his criminal partners off from the U.S. financial system and help dismantle the network they rely on. Our goal is simple: make it difficult for criminals like this to profit from poisoning our communities.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cInternational cooperation, such as our involvement in Operation Giant Slalom, is vital to our ability to stay ahead of organized crime,\u201d said Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) Commissioner Mike Duheme. \u201cThe RCMP and its international law enforcement partners work together closely, regularly sharing knowledge, technical expertise, and intelligence to enable us to collectively target the most serious organized crime groups that threaten our countries – no matter where they are operating in the world.\u201d<\/p>\n

To eliminate threats and advance his enterprise\u2019s interests, Wedding issued orders to murder various individuals, including an order to kill the victim, a witness in a 2024 federal narcotics case<\/a> against Wedding, which resulted in the victim\u2019s death. Wedding placed a bounty on the victim and enlisted the services of others to locate and kill the victim, who was shot to death in a restaurant in Medell\u00edn, Colombia, in January 2025.<\/p>\n

In the 2024 indictment, Wedding is charged with running a continuing criminal enterprise, assorted drug trafficking charges, and directing the November 20, 2023, murders of two members of a family in Caledon, Ontario, Canada, in retaliation for a stolen drug shipment that passed through Southern California. Another member of that family survived the shooting but was left with serious physical injuries.<\/p>\n

Also charged in the indictment unsealed today are 18 additional defendants, including Paradkar, a criminal barrister who advised Wedding to murder the victim so that Wedding would avoid extradition to the United States from Mexico on the 2024 federal criminal charges against him. Paradkar also provided Wedding with court documents and discovery to which he would not otherwise have access, and \u2013 through attorneys whose representation he secured \u2013 access to enterprise members and associates who either were arrested, indicted, or under investigation.<\/p>\n

Bal was the co-founder and co-operator of \u201cThe Dirty News,\u201d a website that law enforcement seized<\/a> pursuant to a federal warrant. In exchange for payment, Bal agreed to not post about Wedding and instead posted a photograph of the victim so that the victim could be located and killed.<\/p>\n

Basora-Hernandez, a reggaeton musician and citizen of the Dominican Republic, provided co-conspirators with the victim\u2019s contact information for the purpose of helping Wedding and his criminal enterprise locate and murder the victim.<\/p>\n

Concurrent with Tuesday\u2019s arrests, law enforcement has taken immigration action against associates of Wedding\u2019s enterprise, including Latin pop artist Samantha Melissa Granda-Gastelu, 38, a Canadian national residing in Aventura, Florida, whose husband Nahim Jorge Bonilla, 37, has been indicted on separate murder conspiracy charges. Bonilla is in currently in federal custody, charged with drug trafficking crimes. An immigration action also is being initiated against Madeline Paradkar, 27, a Canadian national residing in Chicago who is an attorney and Paradkar\u2019s daughter.<\/p>\n

Law enforcement continues to search for Wedding, and the following three defendants:<\/p>\n

Rasheed Pascua Hossain, 32, of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada;Bianca Canastillo-Madrid, 37, of Mexico City; andTommy Demorizi, 35, of Montr\u00e9al, who is believed to be a fugitive in the Dominican Republic<\/p>\n

If convicted, Wedding \u2013 and the defendants charged in connection with the victim\u2019s murder \u2013 would face a maximum sentence of life in federal prison.<\/p>\n

The FBI is investigating this matter with the Los Angeles Police Department, the United States Departments of State and Treasury \u2013 Office of Foreign Assets Control, and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police \u2013 Federal Policing. In addition, significant assistance was provided by U.S. law enforcement partners, including Homeland Security Investigation Miami and Chicago and U.S. Customs and Border Protection \u2013 Buffalo; Canadian law enforcement partners, including Ontario Provincial Police, and Colombian law enforcement partners, including Colombian National Police \u2013 Directorate of Criminal Investigation and Interpol, Special Interagency Investigation Group (Polic\u00eda Nacional de Colombia \u2013 Direcci\u00f3n de Investigaci\u00f3n Criminal e Interpol, Grupo Especial de Investigaci\u00f3n Interagenciales).<\/p>\n

The Justice Department\u2019s Office of International Affairs and the Criminal Division\u2019s Money Laundering, Narcotics and Forfeiture Section\u2019s Judicial Attach\u00e9 Office in Bogot\u00e1, Colombia also provided significant assistance.<\/p>\n

Assistant United States Attorneys Lyndsi Allsop and Kenneth R. Carbajal of the Major Crimes Section and Assistant United States Attorneys Jonathan Galatzan, Tara Vavere, and Alexander Su of the Asset Forfeiture and Recovery Section are prosecuting this case.<\/p>\n

This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs) and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.<\/p>\n

This case is also part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, TCOs, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad.<\/p>\n

An indictment contains allegations that a defendant has committed a crime. Every defendant is presumed to be innocent until and unless proven guilty in court.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"WASHINGTON \u2013 Ten defendants have been arrested \u2013 and 11 total are in custody \u2013 pursuant to a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":115879,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[23,3,21,19,22,20,25,24],"class_list":["post-301726","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-united-states","tag-america","tag-news","tag-united-states","tag-united-states-of-america","tag-unitedstates","tag-unitedstatesofamerica","tag-us","tag-usa"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/301726","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=301726"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/301726\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/115879"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=301726"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=301726"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=301726"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}