KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — A St. Joseph, man was sentenced Thursday to three years in federal prison without parole for participating in the distribution of nearly $6 million of synthetic cannabinoid products, also known as K2.
Shakeel Khan, 42, also was ordered Thursday to forfeit $2 million to the government that was seized by law enforcement during its investigation. He also must pay a $4.7 million judgment, which is the amount of all K2-related deposits in his bank accounts, prosecutors said.
Co-defendants Mohammed Saleem, 46, of Diamond Back, California, and Asif Saddiq, 61, of Fullerton, California, each were sentenced in December to four years in federal prison without parole. They also were ordered to pay a money judgment.
Khan, Saleem, and Saddiq each pleaded guilty to participating in a conspiracy to distribute misbranded drugs across state lines from March 1, 2011, to April 30, 2014. They also pleaded guilty to participating in a money-laundering conspiracy that involved payments totaling nearly $500,000 to bank accounts in Pakistan.
Saleem began producing synthetic cannabinoids in Kansas City, in 2009, where he met Khan. During the conspiracy, Saleem began producing the product in Texas. The men later distributed the product in California, at one point producing 50,000 bags of K-2 six days a week.