Two people have been arrested in Texas for allegedly performing illegal abortions and illegally operating a network of clinics in Northwest Houston.
Maria Margarita Rojas, 48, a midwife known as “Dr. Maria,” and Jose Manuel Cendan Ley, 29, are facing charges for unlawful performance of an abortion and practicing medicine without a license, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced this week.
The arrests are the first criminal charges brought under the state’s near-total abortion restriction, The Texas Tribune reported.
“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 as statement. “Texas law protecting life is clear, and we will hold those who violate it accountable.”
The investigation revealed that Rojas owned and operated several clinics, called Clinica Waller Latinoamericana in Waller, Clinica Latinoamericana Telge in Cypress, and Latinoamericana Medical Clinic in Spring, and allegedly unlawfully employed unlicensed people who “falsely presented themselves as licensed medical professionals to provide medical treatment,” according to the attorney general’s office.
She also allegedly performed illegal abortions at those clinics in violation of the Texas Human Life Protection Act. In addition to her arrest, Paxton’s Healthcare Program Enforcement Division filed for a temporary restraining order to shut down her clinics.
Ley, who was arrested on Monday, is a Cuban national who entered the U.S. illegally in 2022, and “was later paroled under the open borders policies enacted by the lawless Biden Administration,” Paxton’s office said. Ley is accused of assisting Rojas with at least one illegal abortion and performing illegal medical procedures as a medical assistant at Clinica Waller Latinoamericana in Waller.
According to the Tribune, Ley is not licensed to practice medicine in Texas but was a licensed doctor in Cuba. He later told investigators he was put in touch with Rojas after training with the global health nonprofit Doctors without Borders.
A third person, Rubildo Labanino Matos, 54, was arrested on March 8 after returning to the U.S. from Cuba, according to Paxton’s office. Matos is a nurse practitioner whose license is currently on probation by the Board of Nursing. He is facing a charge for conspiracy to practice medicine without a license.
“Ley told investigators that he saw patients as a medical assistant and would consult via tablet with someone he believed to be Labanino Matos, before signing forms with Labanino Matos’ name,” according to the Tribune report.
Unlawful performance of an abortion is a second-degree felony in Texas and can result in up to 20 years in prison. Paxton’s office added that under the Texas Human Life Protection Act of 2021, the attorney general may seek civil penalties of at least $100,000 per violation for the illegal performance of an abortion.
The attorney general’s office said the investigation is ongoing.
