AUSTIN, Texas — At least two people have been arrested for allegedly providing abortions in the Houston area.
In a press release, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said 48-year-old Maria Margarita Rojas allegedly provided illegal abortions and illegally operated a network of clinics in northwest Houston. Rojas, a midwife known as “Dr. Maria,” was taken into custody in Waller County and charged with two counts of performing an abortion and two counts of practicing medicine without a license on Monday.
Another press release from the Waller County District Attorney Sean Whittmore said they also arrested 29-year-old Jose Manuel Cendan Ley, who is a Cuban national, on similar charges on Monday.
Both defendants are being held on a $200,000 bond for the charges of practicing medicine without a license and a $500,000 bond for the charges of performing an illegal abortion. Rojas was also arrested on March 7 on a charge of practicing medicine without a license and had a bond set at $10,000.
“In Texas, life is sacred. I will always do everything in my power to protect the unborn, defend our state’s pro-life laws, and work to ensure that unlicensed individuals endangering the lives of women by performing illegal abortions are fully prosecuted,” Paxton said in a statement. “Texas law protecting life is clear, and we will hold those who violate it accountable.”
Paxton’s office also filed for a temporary restraining order to shut down Rojas’s network of clinics. Rojas owns and operates multiple clinics under the names Clinica Waller Latinoamericana in Waller, Clinica Latinoamericana Telge in Cypress and Latinoamericana Medical Clinic in Spring.
The charge of illegal performance of an abortion carries a punishment of up to 20 years in prison while the charge of practicing medicine without a license carries a penalty of up to 10 years in prison.
Paxton later said on Tuesday morning that a third person–54-year-old nurse practitioner Rubildo Labanino Matos–was arrested on March 8 in connection to the investigation. Matos was returning to the U.S. from Cuba when he was arrested and charged with conspiracy to practice medicine without a license. He was taken into custody in Waller County, officials in the county later confirmed.
According to Paxton, Matos’ license is currently on probation by the Texas Board of Nursing.
Abortion is banned in Texas. The state’s abortion laws are among the strictest in the nation, but abortion rights advocates say the law is unclear about when medical exceptions are allowed. They have been pushing to Texas to make clarifications to the law.
Proposed legislation in Texas would require that patients have a medical emergency for a physician to perform an abortion, but strikes language from the current law that it must be a life-threatening condition. The bill would also require doctors and lawyers to receive training about the law.
When Rojas’s office was called for comment, the messages were passed on to a supervisor who had not yet responded.
CORRECTION: This article has been updated to clarify that both Rojas and Cendan Ley have been issued the same bond of $200,000 on one charge and $500,000 on the other charge for their arrests on March 17. Additionally, the spelling of Jose Manuel Cendan Ley’s name has been corrected.
