Accused Ryan Wedding money launderer denied bail: 'Has not been candid with the court'
· Toronto Sun
Rolan Sokolovski, the suspected Toronto bagman for a billion-dollar international drug empire allegedly run by Ryan Wedding, will remain in prison while he fights extradition to the United States.
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Superior Court Justice Peter Bawden denied bail after finding the U.S. case for extradition is “strong” and there is “compelling evidence” Sokolovski, 37, was involved in money-laundering through his Diamond Tsar business.
“U.S. authorities have obtained financial records showing numerous transfers from (his) cryptocurrency accounts directly to wallets associated with the Wedding DTO (drug trafficking organization),” Bawden said Friday.
Tried to ‘mislead the court’ and sureties
Four proposed bail sureties, their identities protected by a publication ban to protect their safety, had pledged $1.2 million and Sokolovski himself has proposed an additional $2 million.
Bawden found Sokolovski tried to “mislead the court” as well as his proposed sureties about his finances and where his money comes from.
“In my view, it is evident Mr. Sokolovski has not been candid with the court about the origins of his income,” the judge said. “He has reported no personal income for the past four years, yet he maintained a lavish lifestyle, including driving an expensive vehicle, paying off his (friend’s) debt, funding costly travel and providing a $1.7-million cash deposit on a new home.”
What prosecutors allege
Federal prosecutors allege Sokolovski was third in command to Wedding, the former Canadian Olympian snowboarder arrested last month for allegedly heading up an organization that funnels hundreds of kilos of cocaine from Colombia to Canada via the U.S. as well as ordering hits on enemies of his operation.
In fighting Sokolovski’s release on bail, Crown attorney Heather Graham alleged he was well aware of the “murders and violence,” and even made a piece of jewelry for one of their hit men.
“While Mr. Sokolovski didn’t pull any triggers,” she said, “his role was crucial to the violent operation.”
Safety concerns for accused and sureties
Bawden noted the continued danger posed by the organization. “The applicant faces extremely serious allegations connected to an international drug trafficking organization which is known to have engaged in witness intimidation and murder. If the applicant were released, there would be obvious concerns for his safety and the safety of his sureties.”
Unlike Wedding lawyer Deepak Paradkar, the “cocaine lawyer” released on $5-million bail, the judge found the young, childless Sokolovski doesn’t have strong ties to Canada. “It is not unreasonable to conclude that he may be willing to begin a new life in another jurisdiction if able to do so.”
Bawden found the risk he would abscond is “too great,” he concluded.
“The incentive for Mr. Sokolovski to flee is considerable. If convicted of the drug trafficking offences, he faces a minimum sentence of 10 years imprisonment and given the scale of the alleged conduct, namely the trafficking of multiple tons of cocaine across international borders, it is reasonable to expect that any sentence imposed would be substantially higher than the minimum.”