Canadian national sentenced to over 11 years in prison for facilitating cocaine shipments from South America to Canada

HOUSTON - A 35-year-old man who illegally resided in the Heights area in Houston has been ordered to federal prison for his role in a transnational drug trafficking organization, announced U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei.

Jack Kasjaniuk pleaded guilty May 27.

U.S. District Judge Kenneth M. Hoyt has now ordered Kasjaniuk to serve 135 months in federal prison. At the hearing, the court heard additional evidence that described Kasjaniuk's role in operating a waypoint for hundreds of kilograms of cocaine coming from Mexico and South America and destined for Canada. Not a U.S. citizen, Kasjaniuk is expected to face removal proceedings following the sentence.

Kasjaniuk came to the United States for the express purpose of receiving the shipments of cocaine, repackaging them and sending them on to the drug trafficking organization in Canada. Kasjaniuk operated the cocaine distribution point in the Heights neighborhood of Houston for approximately two years.

The investigation revealed that in one three-month span alone, Kasjaniuk handled at least 620 kilograms of cocaine on behalf of the organization.

He has been and will remain in custody pending transfer to a Federal Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.

The Drug Enforcement Administration conducted the investigation with the assistance of the Houston Police Department, Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the Alberta, Canada, Law Enforcement Response Team. Assistant U.S. Attorney Stuart Tallichet prosecuted the case.