 for payments.The syndicate allegedly used USDT to avoid law enforcement detection, with QR codes enabling crypto payments for drug transactions.){kind=link}
Former Olympic snowboarder Ryan James Wedding has been hit with criminal charges for allegedly participating in a billion-dollar cocaine trafficking operation.
According to a U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) indictment filed on Thursday, Wedding and 15 others were involved in smuggling cocaine from Colombia through Mexico into the U.S. and Canada.
The syndicate allegedly used the cryptocurrency Tether (USDT) to conceal their transactions and evade law enforcement.
The Role of USDT in Cocaine Trafficking
Authorities claim the gang was behind several killings related to their operation, underscoring the gang’s vicious reputation. The FBI is looking for Wedding, a once-heralded athlete representing Canada at the 2002 Winter Olympics. A $50,000 reward has been offered by the organisation for information that results in his extradition and arrest.
According to the indictment, Tether was a crucial mode of payment for the narcotics ring’s transactions. According to one incident detailed in the indictment, co-defendant Bonilla used Tether to pay Wedding and another defendant, Clark, for two kilogrammes of cocaine.
Utilising cryptocurrencies was a component of the group’s plan to evade law enforcement discovery. Drug dealers received QR codes that allowed them to accept payments in USDT, making it more difficult to monitor the operation’s financial flow.
In the course of its investigation, the DOJ has confiscated over $3.2 million in cryptocurrency in addition to over a tonne of cocaine, weapons, ammunition, and over $250,000 in cash.
The Olympic Athlete-Turned-Fugitive
Ryan Wedding, 47, has had previous brushes with the law. His Olympic biography notes that he was convicted in 2008 for attempting to buy cocaine from a U.S. government agent, for which he served four years in prison. Despite this, Wedding had been living in Mexico before his recent involvement in the drug trade.
The DOJ’s indictment and subsequent charges against Wedding mark a stunning fall from grace for the former athlete. U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada commented on the case, saying, “As alleged in the indictment, an Olympic athlete-turned-drug lord is now charged with leading a transnational organised crime group that engaged in cocaine trafficking and murder, including of innocent civilians.”
Wedding’s participation in this trafficking organisation draws attention to both his prior criminal activity and the growing usage of cryptocurrencies by criminal groups.
The Importance and Popularity of Tether
With a market capitalisation of $3 billion, Tether is the third-largest cryptocurrency and is one of the most actively traded coins, with 24-hour volume second only to Bitcoin.
In the cryptocurrency market, stablecoins like Tether are commonly utilised to speed up trading by providing a link between fiat money and more volatile cryptocurrencies.
Nonetheless, there has long been debate over Tether’s business practices. U.S. authorities have questioned whether dollars entirely back the company’s stablecoin and after the state’s attorney general launched an investigation in 2021, Tether decided to cease operations in the state. According to the research, Tether has misrepresented the reserves that supported USDT.
Despite this, Tether frequently points to its quarterly reports and transparency efforts to demonstrate compliance. The company also claims to work closely with law enforcement to freeze funds linked to illegal activity, adding complexity to its role in the broader crypto ecosystem.