By Shawn Henry 
Federal authorities have seized one of the rarest Mercedes-Benz supercars ever built—a 2002 CLK GTR Roadster valued at roughly $13 million—as part of an international investigation targeting former Olympic snowboarder and FBI Top Ten Most Wanted fugitive Ryan Wedding.
Firefighters Save Driver from Mustang Teetering Over Tennessee Embankment
The Justice Department announced that the car was confiscated during a series of arrests linked to “Operation Giant Slalom,” a nine-count federal indictment involving drug trafficking, money laundering, and the January 31 killing of a federal witness in Colombia. Ten suspects were taken into custody this week, with 11 detained overall. Wedding remains at large and is believed to be hiding in Mexico, according to investigators.
In a public post, the FBI’s Los Angeles division revealed four photos of the seized Mercedes, writing that the rare supercar was recovered as part of the growing case against Wedding and his associates. Only 28 CLK GTRs were ever produced for the road, and just six of those were convertibles. The car has been widely described as one of the most valuable modern Mercedes vehicles ever built.
The CLK GTR Roadster appears to have been stored among assets linked to Wedding’s organization, which prosecutors say worked closely with cartel networks while laundering drug profits across several countries. Authorities have not disclosed whether the vehicle will be auctioned or held as evidence.
“Ryan Wedding controls one of the most prolific and violent drug trafficking organizations in this world,” Florida Attorney General Pamela Bondi said. “We will not rest until his name is taken off the FBI’s Top Ten Most Wanted List, and his narco-trafficking organization lies dismantled.”
Federal officials say the unusual collection of defendants—among them a Canadian criminal barrister, a reggaeton musician, and a self-styled gangland media operator—highlights the complexity and reach of the criminal network.
First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli said this week’s arrests “serve as a warning for drug lord Ryan Wedding: If convicted, you will never see the outside of a prison ever again.”
For now, the extraordinarily rare Mercedes is secured in federal custody—an unexpected centerpiece in a case that spans continents, cartels, and one of the strangest fugitive stories in recent memory.