Heather Ruybal was also ordered to pay $40,000 in restitution after prosecutors linked the case to a fraudulent Rowlett rental.
DALLAS, TX — A woman whose long history of evictions in Texas and Colorado earned her the label “serial squatter” has been sentenced to 20 years in prison after a Dallas County fraud conviction stemming from a 2023 rental in Rowlett.
Heather Ruybal, who was charged in the Texas case under the name Heather Schwab, was sentenced Aug. 31 after a jury convicted her in July. Prosecutors said she used her father’s identity to apply for the Rowlett home, signed his name and moved into the property without paying the agreed rent. The court also ordered her to pay $40,000 in restitution to homeowner Jessica Davis.
The sentence marks the latest and most serious criminal consequence in a history that court records and news reports trace across more than two decades. Ruybal has been evicted dozens of times in Colorado and Texas, according to Denver7, while earlier CBS News reports documented more than 20 Texas evictions involving Ruybal and her husband. Landlords accused the pair of moving into rental homes, failing to make payments and remaining during lengthy eviction proceedings.
The Rowlett case began in 2023 after Davis and her husband, Colin, moved to Florida because of a job transfer and decided to rent their four-bedroom Texas home. Davis told CBS News Texas at the time that she believed she was renting to a woman named Rayes Ruybal. The deposit and first rent payment initially appeared to be pending, but the payments later failed because they came from a closed account. Davis began researching the renter and discovered previous reports involving Heather Schwab.
Rowlett police initially treated the dispute as a civil rental matter, but investigators took another look after questions were raised about the identity used to obtain the lease. Police later said the use of a false identity distinguished the case from an ordinary landlord-tenant dispute. A felony warrant was issued in October 2023, charging Schwab with fraud connected to securing the rental agreement.
Dallas County Assistant District Attorney Amber Moore, who prosecuted the case, told Denver7 that Ruybal’s familiarity with eviction procedures helped her remain in homes for months after payments stopped. Moore said Ruybal’s previous Colorado conviction also increased the punishment available in the Texas case. Because she had previously served prison time for a similar offense, her maximum possible sentence increased from 10 years to 20 years. Moore said Ruybal is likely to serve at least five years before becoming eligible for parole.
Davis suffered consequences that continued long after the 2023 eviction dispute. Moore said Davis eventually lost the Rowlett home after the missing rental income left her unable to keep up with mortgage payments. During the original dispute, Davis had told reporters that she was cutting expenses and moving in with family as she tried to protect the property. The $40,000 restitution order imposed with Ruybal’s sentence is intended to compensate Davis for losses recognized in the criminal case.
Ruybal had already served prison time in Colorado before the Rowlett case. In 2018, she pleaded guilty to felony identity theft after prosecutors said she used relatives’ identities in connection with rental properties. A Colorado judge sentenced her to six years in prison. More recent reporting citing the Colorado Department of Corrections says she served just over three years before completing that prison term and was discharged from parole in 2022. She later received 18 months of probation in Adams County after pleading guilty in another theft case.
The Texas sentence does not resolve Ruybal’s separate legal problems in Colorado. Denver prosecutors have charged her with felony theft in a case alleging that she diverted more than $500,000 from a company where she worked as a payroll manager and bookkeeper. Investigators allege that payments were directed to accounts connected to Ruybal between 2024 and 2026. That case remains pending, and the allegations have not been proven in court.
Ruybal’s attorney in the Dallas case did not respond to Denver7’s request for comment following the sentencing. The 20-year Texas prison term now leaves Ruybal in custody while authorities determine how the Dallas conviction will affect proceedings in her separate Colorado criminal case.
Author note: Last updated September 1, 2026.