Cartel boss helped Olympian traffic drugs, evade capture, U.S. says

A cartel boss shot to death by police in Mexico last week helped Olympian Ryan Wedding traffic drugs and avoid the authorities before his arrest in January 2026, the U.S. Department of Justice said on Tuesday. 

In an indictment unsealed Tuesday, federal prosecutors alleged that Edgar Aaron Vazquez Alvarado, or "El General," trafficked cocaine for Wedding's criminal enterprise and provided the organization with "near-daily, rotating code words" that were used for safe passage through law enforcement checkpoints. Vasquez, 42, also allegedly paid Mexican public officials to slow down criminal investigations, tamper with evidence and dismiss criminal charges.

Vasquez also helped Wedding personally avoid U.S. law enforcement for two years, the Justice Department said.  

The founder of Mexico City's El Cártel Nuevo Imperio, Vasquez was shot and killed by Mexican security forces attempting to serve an arrest warrant in Naucalpan, Mexico, according to Mexico's Security Minister Omar García Harfuch. Harfuch said Vasquez fired on security forces and was responsible for the 2024 death of Milton Morales, a Mexico City police chief. 

The U.S. Justice Department also announced a six-count federal indictment against Roberto Gomez, a U.S. citizen and gang member living in Mexico. Federal prosecutors allege that Gomez has spent the past decade as a drug supplier to international criminal organizations, including Wedding's. 

Gomez primarily transported cocaine, methamphetamine and fentanyl from Central America to Mexico with planes and maritime vessels, then used land-based methods to bring those substances into the U.S. and Canada, prosecutors say. His efforts allegedly included attempting to broker the sale of 1,000 pounds of methamphetamine between a supplier and Wedding. The sale would have been worth about $550,000, the Justice Department said. 

From 2024 to 2026, Gomez, 51, also allegedly helped Wedding avoid apprehension by U.S. authorities. The department said that Gomez's connections with cartels, including the powerful Sinaloa Cartel, and relationships with "individuals who had access to law-enforcement sensitive information from Mexican and U.S. agencies" allowed him to obtain information about law enforcement operations. 

If convicted on all charges, Gomez would face a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in federal prison and a maximum sentence of life in prison. 

The United States has made dozens of arrests while investigating Wedding's international drug trafficking network. Wedding allegedly ran the network as part of the Sinaloa Cartel and orchestrated several killings. 

A Mexican judge was arrested last week and charged with taking bribes to free an accused drug trafficker linked to Wedding.   

FBI Director Kash Patel has referred to the former Olympian as "a modern-day 'El Chapo." Wedding was placed on the FBI's Top Ten Most Wanted List before his arrest. 

Wedding faces 17 felony charges, including those related to drug trafficking and murder, across two indictments. He has pleaded not guilty. The Justice Department said that he will remain in U.S. custody without bond.