Drug trafficking mom imprisoned for smuggling meth across border

McALLEN, Texas - A 41-year-old Dallas woman has been sentenced for possession with intent to distribute more than 500 grams of meth, announced U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani.

Alma Delia Rios pleaded guilty March 22, 2022.

U.S. District Judge Micaela Alvarez has now ordered Rios to serve a total of 145 months in federal prison to be immediately followed by three years of supervised release. At the hearing, the court heard that Rios imported narcotics from Mexico on behalf of Dallas drug traffickers. In handing down the sentence, the court noted Rios' use of her minor daughter as a means to disguise the trip as a typical family vacation when is was a drug deal.

In October 2021, Rios attempted entry from Mexico into the United States via the Hidalgo Port of Entry. A K-9 alerted to narcotics in her vehicle's gas tank and door panels. A subsequent search revealed approximately 12 kilograms of crystal meth in the door panels and approximately 28 kilos of liquid meth in the gas tank.

Law enforcement determined Rios drove her minor daughter along with several friends from Dallas to a hotel in Reynosa, Mexico. Rios then knowingly provided her vehicle to Mexican drug traffickers who hid the narcotics in the vehicle.

Just a few months prior, in June 2021, Rios made the same trip and successfully entered the port of entry undetected with narcotics hidden in the same vehicle.

Rios was permitted to remain on bond and voluntarily surrender to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.

The Drug Enforcement Administration conducted the investigation with the assistance of Customs and Border Protection. Assistant U.S. Attorney Laura Garcia prosecuted the case.