SCRANTON—A Lackawanna County woman has been found guilty of distributing a controlled substance that resulted in the death of another person.
Holly Kaszuba, 45, of Dickson City, was convicted of unlawfully distributing a controlled substance resulting in the death of Christopher Graff, 30, of Dunmore, Pennsylvania, after a five-day trial before Senior U.S. District Court Judge A. Richard Caputo.
According to United States Attorney David J. Freed, jurors deliberated for approximately two hours before rendering the guilty verdict against Kaszuba for the December 13, 2015 death of Graff.
Prosecutors from the U.S. Attorney’s Office presented the testimony of Dr. Gary Ross, Forensic Pathologist, Dr. Michael Coyer, Forensic Toxicologist, and Dr. Stacey Hail, an expert in Emergency Medicine and Medical Toxicology, all of whom opined that fentanyl laced heroin caused the death of Christopher Graff.
Additional testimony was provided by Dunmore Police Detectives and other individuals related to the investigation who testified that Kaszuba arranged and facilitated the distribution of the fentanyl laced heroin to Christopher Graff that ultimately caused his death.
The investigation was conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration – Scranton Office, the Dunmore and Scranton Police Departments, the Lackawanna County District Attorney’s Office, the Lackawanna County Office of Probation/Parole, and the Coroner’s Office of Lackawanna County.
Assistant United States Attorneys Michelle Olshefski and Daryl Bloom prosecuted the case, which was brought as part of a district-wide initiative to combat the nationwide epidemic regarding the use and distribution of heroin and other opioids.
The maximum penalty under federal law is life in prison, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. The drug distribution resulting in death charge also carries a mandatory minimum penalty of 20 years’ imprisonment.
Key Facts
- State: Pennsylvania
- Category: Drug Trafficking|Violent Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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