There was a whopping $15 million reward for information leading to the capture of former Canadian Olympic snowboarder Ryan Wedding, who had become one of the FBI’s most-wanted fugitives. And just recently, the international manhunt concluded not with a dramatic raid, but with a surprising surrender.

As reported by the BBC, the 44-year-old former Olympian turned himself in on Thursday at the US embassy in Mexico City and was taken into custody by the FBI Hostage Rescue Team. Wedding is now set to appear in court on Monday.

FBI Director Kash Patel officially announced Wedding’s arrest at a news conference in Ontario, California, where he framed the capture as the result of international cooperation between Canadian and Mexican authorities as well as the FBI.

Patel described Wedding as a “modern-day Pablo Escobar,” referring to the infamous Colombian cartel leader, and also drew comparisons to Mexican drug lord Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán.

“When you go after a guy like Ryan Wedding, it takes a united front,” Patel said. “This was a complex, high-stakes operation with zero margin for error. I was on the ground with our team in Mexico and witnessed extraordinary teamwork, precision, and trust between our agents and partners in Mexico.”

In March 2025, the former Canadian Olympic star was added to the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list. There were multiple raids on his alleged properties in Mexico as well as murder and drug trafficking charges leveled against him.

But finally, a few days ago, Mexico’s Security Secretary Omar García Harfuch confirmed that a certain Canadian citizen had turned himself in at the US embassy.

This person was none other than Wedding, and now, he is expected to appear in federal court, as per the assistant director in charge of the FBI field office in Los Angeles, Akil Davis. The assistant director also confirmed the arrest of 36 individuals in relation to the alleged 44-year-old Olympian. However, how did he take this drastic turn in his career?

An Olympian’s career gone wrong

For someone like Ryan Wedding, who won a bronze medal at the 1999 Junior World Championship and a silver at the 2001 Junior World Championship in the parallel giant slalom, his career was looking bright in the winter sport.

He represented Team Canada in the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics, which was also his Olympic debut, but he wasn’t able to fetch any medals and finished 24th. However, rather than continuing his career in snowboarding, he gave up the sport and eventually turned to crime.

Things took a dark turn for the former Olympian in 2008, when an undercover FBI agent caught him red-handed, trying to buy drugs in San Diego. The case went to trial, and though his lawyer claimed he had been “duped by an experienced drug dealer,” Wedding was ultimately found guilty.

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He was sentenced in 2010, where he apologized to the court and his family, saying, “I knew it was wrong, and I did it anyway. I’ve had an opportunity to see firsthand what drugs do to people, and honestly, I’m ashamed that I became a part of the problem for years.”

Wedding served a 48-month sentence, and after he was released in December 2011, authorities claim that he reverted and engaged in more serious criminal activities, ultimately making it to the FBI’s most-wanted fugitives list.