A Calgary ex-junior hockey player has been taken into custody on extradition warrants tied to an FBI operation aimed at an alleged Canadian drug kingpin wanted for murder and other crimes.
Allistair Chapman, aged 33, is charged with providing a photo to a co-accused individual and compensating him to post it on Dirty News website, with the intention of locating and eliminating a witness before the person could testify against Ryan Wedding, the alleged head of a transnational criminal group.
Chapman’s arrest in Calgary is linked to extradition to California, facing multiple charges such as conspiracy to distribute cocaine, conspiracy to commit murder, and involvement in organized crime activities, including retaliating against a witness.
As part of Operation Giant Slalom, a global probe into murders, cocaine trafficking, and importation, ten individuals, seven residing in Canada, were apprehended, including Chapman, on Tuesday.
Ryan Wedding, a former Team Canada Olympic snowboarder turned fugitive and the main target of the investigation, is said to be residing in Mexico, according to the FBI’s most-wanted list.
Chapman is implicated in the “Wedding Criminal Enterprise,” described as a billion-dollar drug trafficking syndicate operating across Mexico, Colombia, Canada, and the U.S., recognized as a major cocaine supplier to Canada.
At a news conference in Washington, D.C., FBI Director Kash Patel and RCMP Commissioner Michael Duheme announced the arrests, shedding light on the alleged criminal activities orchestrated by Wedding and his associates.
According to U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi, Wedding, based in Mexico, oversees a notorious drug trafficking network responsible for numerous murders, including the killing of a witness in a 2024 federal drug case.
Chapman is accused of facilitating the murder of a victim by providing a photo to aid in locating and executing the individual, who was fatally shot in a Colombian restaurant in January.
Wedding and his cohorts are alleged to smuggle large quantities of cocaine annually from Colombia through Mexico, reaching North American markets, as part of their illicit operations.
John Hurley, the Treasury undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, emphasized the exposure of the network supporting Ryan Wedding’s criminal activities.
Chapman’s arrest on Tuesday, based on an extradition warrant issued by a Quebec judge, led to a court appearance before Court of King’s Bench Justice Shane Parker, where he is being held under the Extradition Act pending a hearing on Friday.
While Chapman has a history with law enforcement, including previous allegations of leading an organized crime group involved in international drug and firearms trafficking, charges against him in 2018 were ultimately dropped due to a Charter right violation related to a speedy trial. Chapman, a former AJHL hockey player, had played with the Calgary Royals and Drayton Valley Thunder.
