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An Ontario man arrested in a sweep targeting alleged associates of Canadian fugitive Ryan Wedding is asking the court to protect the identities of the people proposing to supervise him on bail.
Lawyers representing Rolan Sokolovski made an application ahead of his bail hearing next week to prohibit the publication of information that could identify his potential sureties.
Sokolovski is one of several Canadians facing extradition to the United States as part of an FBI investigation into Wedding, a former Olympic snowboarder allegedly at the helm of a violent international drug trafficking ring.
U.S. authorities allege Sokolovski, who has dual Lithuanian-Canadian citizenship, laundered drug money for the criminal organization and acquired luxury items for Wedding.
His lawyer, Scott Fenton, argued Friday that identifying his client’s proposed sureties could expose them to “great dangers.”
Crown prosecutors, meanwhile, argued there is no evidence of safety threats toward sureties, and shrouding sureties in anonymity would deprive the public of crucial information in understanding the court’s eventual decision regarding Sokolovki’s release.
Judge expected to rule on application Monday
Ontario Superior Court Justice Peter Bawden is expected to rule on the application Monday as Sokolovski’s bail hearing begins.
Sokolovski’s U.S. indictment said the 37-year-old is also a professional poker player, jeweller and procurer.
He is facing sanctions with the U.S. Treasury Department, which alleges he oversaw bookkeeping for the organization and laundered drug money through his jewelry business.
Court documents further allege that Sokolovski made a “bejewelled necklace” that served as payment for an alleged hitman accused of helping facilitate the murder of a federal witness by providing identifying information to Wedding.
The FBI has listed Wedding, who is believed to be on the run in Mexico, as one of its most wanted fugitives.
Ryan Wedding, the Canadian at the centre of one of the biggest international criminal investigations in the world, continues to evade capture thanks in part, the FBI says, to protection from the powerful Sinaloa drug cartel and other criminal entities in Mexico. He’s been on the run since 2015, wanted in connection with multiple drug and conspiracy crimes, in addition to ordering and orchestrating murder.
Last month, a Toronto-area lawyer accused of playing a key role in the criminal enterprise was granted bail under conditions that include 24/7 house arrest. Deepak Paradkar’s wife and another relative are acting as his sureties.
Paradkar is alleged to have advised Wedding on the murder of a federal witness, introduced the former athlete to drug traffickers who moved product through North America and directed intelligence gathering after drugs were seized by law enforcement.
In November, the FBI in Miami seized an ultra-rare Mercedes-Benz CLK-GTR Roadster, estimated to be worth US $13 million as part of its investigation into Wedding’s network. CBC News found the car had been purchased by Sokolovski.
