Timothy T. Duax U.S. Attorney | U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Iowa
A Waterloo woman has been sentenced to two years in federal prison for her role in methamphetamine trafficking. Sylvia Rubio-Rincon, 21, pleaded guilty on June 9, 2025, to possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute.
According to evidence presented at the sentencing hearing, undercover agents communicated with a suspected methamphetamine supplier based in Mexico and arranged for the delivery of nearly one kilogram of methamphetamine. When Rubio-Rincon drove to meet an undercover officer, law enforcement stopped and searched her vehicle, discovering over 900 grams of methamphetamine. Rubio-Rincon stated that she was paid by a family member living in Mexico to deliver the drugs.
United States District Court Chief Judge C.J. Williams sentenced Rubio-Rincon on November 20, 2025, in Cedar Rapids. She received a sentence of 24 months’ imprisonment and must also serve five years of supervised release following her prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.
Rubio-Rincon remains in the custody of the United States Marshals Service pending transfer to a federal prison.
The prosecution is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF brings together multiple agencies—including Department of Homeland Security Immigration and Customs Enforcement; Homeland Security Investigations; Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; Drug Enforcement Agency; Federal Bureau of Investigation; Internal Revenue Service; United States Marshals Service; and United States Postal Inspection Service—to combat criminal cartels and transnational criminal organizations operating within and outside U.S. borders.
Special Assistant United States Attorney Michael S.A. Hudson prosecuted this case with assistance from HSTF Iowa as well as local law enforcement agencies including the Tri-County Drug Enforcement Task Force—comprised of police departments from Waterloo, Cedar Falls, Evansdale, Waverly, Hudson, La Porte City; sheriff’s departments from Black Hawk County and Bremer County—and the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement.
