The wife of an Ontario lawyer allegedly involved in a violent transnational drug ring headed by a former Canadian Olympian says she believes in his innocence.
Mandy Paradkar testified Thursday in a downtown Toronto courtroom during the bail hearing for her husband, Deepak Paradkar, who was arrested and charged last month for his reported involvement with Ryan Wedding.
Wedding, 44, is facing several murder and drug charges stemming from his alleged drug empire that stretches across the Americas. FBI Director Kash Patel has described Wedding as a “modern-day iteration of Pablo Escobar.”
Crown attorney Milica Potrebic asked Mandy, who is proposing to be one of her husband’s sureties should he get bail, about the couple’s finances, assets and her role as a paralegal in his practice, which she was involved in until she was diagnosed with colon cancer in 2024.
She said while Paradkar primarily handled the depositing of clients’ monies, none of the amounts she saw raised any concerns, nor did she ever see her 62-year-old husband get any gifts from clients other than alcohol or chocolates during their decades together.
His arrest last month has been “extremely devastating” for the family’s emotional and financial wellbeing, especially given Paradkar was the sole breadwinner. She said if the allegations against him were proven to be true, it would affect her trust in him.
“I take it with a heavy weight,” Mandy told court.
“I believe in him, and I believe in his innocence.”
Paradkar, who was arrested in Canada under the Extradition Act, is accused by American authorities of advising Wedding to murder a key witness so that Wedding and Andrew Clark, his reported second-in-command, would avoid extradition from Mexico on 2024 criminal charges against them.
That witness was eventually shot dead at a restaurant in Medellín, Colombia, on Jan. 31.
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Paradkar, who American authorities say has several aliases, including the “cocaine lawyer,” allegedly provided Wedding with court documents and evidence from the 2014 criminal case he would not otherwise have had access to.
He’s also accused of introducing Wedding to trusted drug transport networks and overseeing information gathering after drug shipments were seized by law enforcement.
The allegations against Paradkar have not been tested in court. Paradkar, whose licence to practice law in Ontario was suspended last week, has denied the allegations against him and maintains his innocence.
Paradkar told Superior Court Justice Peter Bawden Wednesday if he gets bail, he will follow the “most stringent” release plan he’s ever proposed in his career.
Crown attorneys are arguing Paradkar’s detention pending his extradition is necessary because of flight risk, the need to protect the public and desire to maintain confidence in the justice system.
Paradkar told Bawden Wednesday he is not a flight risk, and said his release plan involves 24-7 house arrest with no access to electronic devices except for his wife’s cellphone, which he would only use in her presence for communication with his lawyers and sureties.
The plan also includes a $5-million pledge between himself and his wife, a $250,000 pledge from her cousin Mark Gallagher – another proposed surety – GPS monitoring and the surrendering of his passport to police.
Paradkar added he has been subject to “very terrible conditions” at Toronto South Detention Centre and Toronto East Detention Centre, and has had issues obtaining medication. He said he has been diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes and underwent a quadruple bypass in 2018.
After Mandy’s testimony, Gallagher told court despite knowing Paradkar “most of my life,” he hasn’t seen him or spoken to him in four years. He said he was aware of the “horrible” allegations against Paradkar, but didn’t have any concerns for himself as a surety.
Meanwhile, a US$15-million bounty has been issued by the U.S. State Department for information that leads to Wedding’s arrest or conviction.
The FBI has said Wedding, who is reportedly living in Mexico under the protection of the Sinaloa Cartel, may be changing his appearance and hair colour to avoid capture. Investigators released a new photo of him Tuesday to generate leads.
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