Ryan Wedding case moves fast as US and Mexico clash over arrest details

Ryan Wedding, a former Canadian Olympic snowboarder, is now at the centre of a major criminal case after his arrest in Mexico and transfer to the United States.

The arrest has triggered a diplomatic dispute between US and Mexican officials, who have offered differing accounts of how Wedding was taken into custody.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said Mexican authorities carried out the action and that Wedding surrendered before being transferred to US officials.

She rejected suggestions that American agents conducted an operation on Mexican soil.

US officials have presented a different version. FBI Director Kash Patel highlighted operational involvement and coordination by US authorities in bringing Wedding back to the US.

Wedding’s defence team has also challenged the surrender narrative, arguing that US law enforcement played a direct role in the arrest.

The disagreement has raised sensitive questions about sovereignty and the role of foreign agents operating in Mexico, an issue Sheinbuam has previously said her government will not accept.

Meanwhile, the criminal case is moving quickly through the US court system as US prosecutors accuse Wedding of leading a large-scale cocaine trafficking operation and linking it to violent acts, including alleged murder plots.

Authorities have also alleged ties to the Sinaloa Cartel and say Wedding had been a fugitive living in Mexico.

Wedding appeared in federal court in California earlier this week, where he pleaded not guilty. A judge ordered him held without bail.

A status conference is scheduled for February 11, 2026, and the trial is currently set to begin on March 24, 2026.