COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa -A Judge in Council Bluffs U-S District Court, Wednesday, sentenced a southwest Iowa woman to prison, for her role in the distribution of meth. The U-S Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa reports 36-year-old Elizabeth Villanueva, of Lenox, was sentenced to 46 months (nearly 4-years) in prison, for possession with the intent to distribute methamphetamine.

Villanueva was ordered to serve a period of supervised release of five years to follow her prison term and pay a $100 special assessment payable to the Crime Victims’ Fund. There is no parole in the federal system.

On January 8, 2020, law enforcement conducted a traffic stop on Villanueva as she drove into Taylor County, Iowa. During a search of her car, approximately a half-pound of methamphetamine was discovered and seized. Villanueva pleaded guilty on October 16, 2020, to the charge.

The case was investigated by the Taylor County Sheriff’s Office and the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement. The case was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa.