A Canadian man served nine months in jail and prison for trafficking more than $1 million worth of cocaine through the Flathead Valley before being approved for release by the Montana Board of Pardons and Parole.

Miguel Douglas Miranda, 22, was approved at the end of March. He will have to complete some programs about using cognitive thinking principles to make better decisions and the issues of chemical dependency before he is released.

Miranda also might be subject to deportation by immigration officials.

Board of Pardons and Parole Analyst Christine Slaughter said the board ordered the chemical dependency element not necessarily because Miranda had a drug problem, but because board members wanted him to see the consequences his actions could have had on those who would have received the drugs he was supposed to deliver.

“The board felt it was important for him to know the deep resonating consequences of that,” Slaughter said.

The programs take four to six months to complete and can be done simultaneously, Slaughter said.

The board also created a provision where Miranda can register with state parole officials if federal authorities do not deport him once he is released.

There is currently an immigration detainer in place for Miranda’s arrest.

Miranda was caught in St. Ignatius in June 2015 with more than 80 pounds of cocaine after he was stopped for having defective mud flaps. A dog detected drugs might be in the vehicle and authorities found a secret compartment with the drugs concealed inside.

Court documents estimated that the drugs were worth between $1.1 million and $1.4 million.

Miranda was sentenced in Lake County District Court to three years with the Montana Department of Corrections. He is currently at the Montana State Prison.

Reporter Megan Strickland can be reached at 758-4459 or [email protected].