Ex-Olympic Snowboarder Wanted in Double Homicide Linked to Drug Trafficking

By October 17, 2024, law enforcement agencies in the United States have announced that Ryan James Wedding, a former Canadian Olympic snowboarder, is wanted in connection with a double homicide in Ontario from the previous year. The U.S. Department of Justice has disclosed that Wedding, along with Andrew Clark, is involved “in retaliation for a stolen drug shipment that passed through Southern California.”

These individuals, who currently reside in Mexico, are among 16 defendants named in a superseding indictment that was recently unsealed. The indictment alleges that the group was orchestrating a transnational drug trafficking operation, which involved the transportation of substantial quantities of cocaine from Colombia, through Mexico and Southern California, into Canada and the U.S.

According to the indictment, Andrew Clark was apprehended by Mexican authorities on October 8. However, Ryan James Wedding remains at large. In addition to their involvement in the double homicide in Caledon, Ontario, which also seriously injured another family member, the Department of Justice has accused Wedding and Clark of orchestrating another murder on May 18, 2024, related to a drug debt. Details surrounding the location of this homicide have not been disclosed.

Furthermore, Clark and another defendant, Malik Damion Cunningham, a 23-year-old Canadian, face charges for a murder that occurred on April 1, 2024, in Mississauga.

Wedding, known by various aliases such as “El Jefe,” “Giant,” and “Public Enemy,” is named the lead defendant in the indictment and faces eight charges, including three counts of murder related to a continuing criminal enterprise. Clark, whose alias is “The Dictator,” is confronted with identical charges, plus an additional count of murder.

In March, CTV News Toronto covered the double homicide in Caledon. The Peel Regional Police, during that time, suggested the triple shooting was possibly due to mistaken identity, which was being investigated under the collaborative effort with the Ontario Provincial Police named “Project Midnight.” The victims, Jaspreet Kaur Sidhu, who survived 13 gunshot wounds, and her parents, Jagtar Singh Sidhu and Harbhajan Kaur Sidhu, were believed to be innocent, as confirmed by OPP Deputy Commissioner Marty Kearns. Authorities assert that the Sidhu family was mistakenly targeted.

The investigation further extends to Ontario residents Hardeep Ratte and Gurpreet Singh, who allegedly managed the Canadian transportation operations of the drug trafficking network led by Wedding and Clark, utilizing long-haul semi-trucks to smuggle narcotics across the border after storage in Los Angeles-based stash houses.

The FBI has announced a reward of up to $50,000 USD for information leading to the arrest of Ryan James Wedding. The situation continues to unfold, as this remains a breaking news story.