An Ontario truck driver has been sentenced to nine years in a U.S. prison after admitting he helped transport cocaine from the United States into Canada as part of an alleged drug network linked to Canadian Olympic snowboarder Ryan Wedding.
Iqbal Singh Virk, 58, of Brampton, Ont., pleaded guilty to two drug charges in a Los Angeles court. He admitted helping move more than 1,800 kilograms of cocaine from the Los Angeles area to Canada.
Virk drove a transport truck from Ontario to California to pick up cocaine hidden in a secret compartment. He and fellow truck driver Ranjit Singh Rowal then tried to return to Canada with legal goods loaded in the truck.
The pair were arrested at the Blue Water Bridge between Ontario and Michigan on Aug. 28, 2024. U.S. authorities found 115 packages of cocaine weighing more than 124 kilograms hidden in the trailer. The drugs were estimated to be worth nearly US$4 million.
The arrests were part of a larger investigation into an international drug-trafficking organization that U.S. authorities allege was led by Wedding.
Wedding, who represented Canada at the 2002 Winter Olympics, was arrested in Mexico in January. He has pleaded not guilty to drug trafficking and murder charges and remains in U.S. custody while awaiting trial.
Several documents in Virk’s case were sealed by the court because they contained information about confidential informants and cooperating witnesses.
Virk’s co-defendant, Rowal, pleaded guilty to similar charges and was sentenced to 37 months in prison last November.
Virk is expected to be deported from the United States after serving his sentence. Both men are Indian citizens who had permanent resident status in Canada.
