Toronto-area man accused in Ryan Wedding case denied bail in appeals court

Rolan Sokolovski accused of providing money to former Canadian Olympic snowboarder and alleged drug lord Ryan Wedding

Published May 16, 2026  •  Last updated 15 minutes ago  •  2 minute read

Rolan Sokolovski is pictured in this photo provided by the U.S. Treasury Department. Photo by Handout /U.S. Treasury Department

A Toronto-area man accused of providing money to former Canadian Olympic snowboarder and alleged drug lord Ryan Wedding will stay behind bars.

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Rolan Sokolovski’s application for bail review was denied by an Ontario appeals court judge in a ruling published Wednesday.

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Sokolovski, a 38-year-old jeweller and former professional poker player from Maple, has been in detention since his arrest on Nov. 18, 2025.

He filed the appeal in March where he asked the court to consider a recent arthritis diagnosis and also claimed the judge who denied him bail had made legal errors.

Judge rejected bail review arguments

“Although the proposed fresh evidence was not available at the time of the applicant’s initial application for interim release, I am not persuaded that this fresh evidence would have affected the outcome,” Justice Lois Roberts wrote in the ruling pertaining to his health diagnosis.

“I do not accept the submission that the applicant’s condition will lessen the risk of flight. While this condition is likely painful, there is no evidence that it is debilitating or requires treatment that prevents flight.”

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The judge also rejected Sokolovski’s claim there was an erroneous ruling that he intentionally shielded his money from his four proposed sureties, that his lifestyle could not be accounted for based on the earnings he reported to Canada Revenue Agency, and that his proposed sureties lacked reliability or suitability because they were unaware of his finances.

“I reject the applicant’s submissions that it was not a fair interpretation of the evidence that the applicant was hiding his finances and that it was an error for the application judge to conclude that the applicant’s lifestyle could not be explained by the evidence,” the judge ruled.

Following a three-day hearing, Sokolovski was denied bail on Feb. 23 after the court ruled “the risk that (the applicant) will abscond, whether by leaving Canada or going underground within Canada, is too great.”

The earlier ruling found that the prosecution “established a strong case for extradition” and that the allegations are “extremely serious, involving international drug trafficking and homicide.”

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Facing extradition to California

Sokolovski is facing extradition to California where he is accused of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute cocaine, conspiracy to export cocaine, and conspiracy to launder monetary instruments.

U.S. prosecutors claim Sokolovski played a key role in the drug trafficking ring allegedly helmed by Wedding and was responsible for laundering hundreds of millions of dollars in assets including cryptocurrency and luxury goods, allegedly through his jewelry business.

Wedding was taken into U.S. custody earlier this year after a lengthy manhunt.

So far, 36 people have been arrested and indicted in connection to Wedding’s alleged drug empire.

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