Heather Ruybal, who court records show was evicted dozens of times in Colorado and Texas over 25 years, was sentenced to 20 years in prison in Dallas following a fraud conviction last month.
Ruybal was taken into custody after she was convicted in July of fraud from a 2023 case where she used her father’s name to apply to rent a home in Rowlett, Texas. She also signed her father’s name, but never paid rent.
Dallas County Assistant District Attorney Amber Moore prosecuted Ruybal – who was charged under the name Heather Schwab in this case – and said that she will likely have to serve at least five years in prison before she would be eligible for parole.
“I would describe it as fascinating and also horrifying at the same time,” she said.
Ruybal was also ordered to pay $40,000 in restitution to the victim, Jessica Davis. Moore said that Davis eventually lost her home because she wasn’t able to make mortgage payments due to the lost rental income.
Moore added that because Ruybal was so familiar with the eviction process, it took months to get her out of the house.
“This is what she did for a living, moved into individuals' homes knowing that she wasn't going to pay rent and then exploited the eviction process in order to stay there for several more months," Moore said.
Ruybal’s previous criminal history in Colorado played a significant role in the length of her sentence. Because she had served prison time in Colorado for fraud in a very similar case, Moore said it increased her maximum sentence to 20 years instead of 10 years.
Ruybal was convicted of a similar crime in 2018 after she used her father’s and aunt’s identities to obtain a lease. She was sentenced to six years in prison and served just over three years, according to the Colorado Department of Corrections.
“We wanted to make sure we highlighted the egregious nature of her conduct and that she had been evicted all these other times,” Moore said.
A Denver landlord first contacted Denver7 Investigates earlier this year after she said her home was contaminated with methamphetamine after she rented her home to Ruybal in 2024. Landlord Stephanie Williams said Ruybal had moved out of the home, but kept paint rent until March of this year.
She later found that Ruybal’s son was living there without permission while Ruybal lived in a home in Castle Rock, where she also stopped paying rent around March, according to that landlord.
Ruybal is also facing criminal charges in Denver, accused of stealing more than $500,000 from a previous employer. She is due in court on that case on Tuesday. A spokesman for the Denver District Attorney’s Office said they are not sure how this conviction will impact the Denver case, but there should be more clarity after her Tuesday hearing.
“I hope it sends a message that her time is up,” Moore said. “No longer is she going to be able to do something like this and get away with it.”
Ruybal’s attorney in Dallas has not responded to a request for comment.
