California woman caught with 20 pounds of cocaine in Nebraska traffic stop is sentenced

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) – A California woman will spend over four years behind bars after she was caught with nearly 20 pounds of cocaine in Nebraska.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office said 35-year-old Imelda Ambriz was sentenced Tuesday to 54 months in prison for transporting cocaine.

On Sept. 17, 2022, a Nebraska State Patrol trooper pulled over a vehicle that was following to close on Interstate 80, just southwest of York.

During the traffic stop, the trooper became suspicious of criminal activity and searched the vehicle, the attorney’s office said.

Inside, troopers found 19.9 pounds of cocaine hidden in the back of the vehicle’s seats.

After her release from prison, Ambriz will serve a three-year term of supervised release.  There is no parole in the federal system.