Kansas City, Kan. ? A package that was more than $84,000 lighter by the time it reached California was among the early ripples felt in May 2012 by several of the eventual 43 co-defendants later arrested and indicted as part of a $17 million drug conspiracy.

During his third day of testimony in Federal District Court in the trial against Lawrence twins Los and Roosevelt Dahda and an associate, Justin Pickel, of San Lorenzo, Calif., fellow co-defendant Peter Park spoke of the highs and lows of business in early 2012.

By spring 2012, Park had recovered nicely from a break-in at his warehouse in Kansas City, Kan., during which he lost up to 20 pounds of marijuana. He even made plans for co-defendant James Soderling — a high-grade marijuana broker with addresses in northern California and Lawrence — to provide 100 pounds of marijuana for a group of eager customers in Missouri, according to a phone call played in court Thursday.

By then, Park said he also helped the Dahdas ship marijuana from California in crates transported under the guise of a shipping company that sent wheels to Park’s Kansas City car customization business. Orders would often be paid for in cash — bills stacked in the thousands and vacuum-sealed. One such payment — $80,000 from Park and co-defendant Wayne Swift, and $4,700 from Los Dahda — never made it to California, having been seized by law enforcement. At first, according to another phone conversation played Thursday, Park tried to assuage a leery Swift, saying they were “still rolling with the punches.”

Chatter about a possible indictment also began to circulate by spring. On Thursday, Park recalled a conversation in which Los Dahda suggested as much. Park, however, said he was not aware at the time that the Utah Highway Patrol had seized 40 pounds of high-grade marijuana from co-defendant Stephen Rector in March 2012. But Park said that Los Dahda did make vague mention of losing a shipment when Park was asked if he knew Pickel had about 38 pounds of marijuana seized during an April 2012 traffic stop in Nebraska.

“Everything was just going chaotic,” Peter Park said in U.S. District Court Thursday. “So I had concerns.”

Finally, Park became one of the case’s many co-defendants arrested on June 13, 2012 — the culmination of an investigation that began in September 2011 by the Lawrence-Douglas County Drug Enforcement Unit and other law enforcement agencies. Park, still in federal custody, said he agreed to cooperate with authorities two days after his arrest, and in five subsequent meetings Park discussed his involvement, what he knew and pored over his detailed business ledgers.

Often jovial this week, Park broke down in court Thursday when Assistant U.S. Attorney Terra Morehead asked him if he knew his potential sentence: 10 years to life for conspiracy and an additional five to life for having had firearms seized in the investigation. Park pleaded guilty to the two charges in March 2013. He could face a reduced sentence for his cooperation with law enforcement.

“I have a young family,” Park said. “I didn’t expect it to be … I just made a bad mistake. It’s not just me: I’m hurting my kids and my wife.”

Later Thursday, Los Dahda’s attorney, Richard Johnson, engaged in a heated exchange with Park during cross-examination before the end of the half-day session. Johnson began by questioning Park about his having previously sold to his cocaine customers a substitute cocktail made with bath salts from China, caffeine and an anesthetic. The tone quickly became confrontational as Johnson repeatedly asked Park if he thought what he did was dishonest and whether he truly knew the substance’s effect on its customers. After several bouts of Johnson talking over Park, Judge Kathryn Vratil interjected, calling the exchange an “argument,” “sarcastic” and “completely improper.”

Johnson also questioned Park’s memory, citing moments when he couldn’t recall all of his employees’ surnames, an investment broker’s name and even his wedding date — which Park was able to recall in court Thursday.

Cross-examination of Park will continue Monday as the trial resumes without further breaks until its conclusion.