Kalispell Woman Connected to Flathead Valley Drug Ring Pleads Not Guilty in Federal Court
Kalynn Moskaloff faces drug and weapons charges; filings allege she was present at fatal shooting last year, bought large quantities of meth from convicted trafficker
By Andy Viano
A 24-year-old Kalispell woman pleaded not guilty to felony drug and weapons charges in U.S. District Court in Missoula Tuesday morning, the latest person to be indicted in connection to a large-scale drug trafficking operation that has already landed two men in jail and left a third man dead.
Federal prosecutors charged Kalynn Moskaloff with three felony counts — conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute methamphetamine, possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. Moskaloff has been in custody since May 17 and she pleaded not guilty to a separate drug charge in Flathead County District Court earlier this month.
In their criminal complaint against her, federal prosecutors connect the dots between Moskaloff and two previously convicted Northwest Montana drug traffickers, Leon Kavis and Scott Daniels, both of whom reached plea agreements with prosecutors earlier this year and are currently serving prison time. Kavis — who was based out of Missoula and linked to the white supremacist prison gang the Aryan Brotherhood — supplied large amounts of meth to Daniels, in Kalispell, who in turn allegedly supplied Moskaloff and others.
A fourth man, Timothy “T.J.” Kuchinski, also allegedly worked with Moskaloff, Kavis and Daniels before he was shot and killed by Kavis at a home on Trumble Creek Road in Flathead County last September. Kavis claimed he shot Kuchinski in self-defense and has not been charged in connection to the killing. Charging documents in Moskaloff’s case say she was present when Kuchinski was killed, and took a gun that was near Kuchinski’s body and moved it to her car before law enforcement arrived at the scene.
Like in Kavis and Daniels’ cases, several confidential informants told the FBI about Moskaloff’s role in the trafficking ring. One told agents Moskaloff bought from Daniels and sold both meth and heroin in the area. Another said they worked with Moskaloff to distribute two pounds of meth a month between May 2019 and May 2020. A third claimed Moskaloff was “running” with Kuchniski and that the pair was supplying the majority of the heroin sold in Kalispell. And a fourth said they supplied Moskaloff and Kuchinski with heroin and meth on two separate occasions. FBI agents also obtained a search warrant for Moskaloff’s Facebook account and found messages that served as “price negotiations” between Moskaloff and other alleged drug traffickers.
In February, Moskaloff was arrested by Flathead County Sheriff’s deputies after running from a vehicle in a fast food parking lot. A subsequent search of that car found 113 grams of meth, scales, a handgun, a pink notebook allegedly used as a drug ledger, and seven phones. The car had also been reported stolen.
Moskaloff is currently being held at the Missoula County Jail. Her next court appearance is July 14.