An El Paso attorney is at the center of a human trafficking probe after a year-long, multi-agency investigation that authorities say exposed an international human-smuggling network. Nine people have been arrested in the case, and investigators allege Cuban women were trafficked to the border area and forced into prostitution to pay off smugglers. Public records and court filings identify the attorney as Mario Ortiz Saroldi, who has been booked on a solicitation charge.
In a press release from the Texas Department of Public Safety, officials said agents with the DPS Criminal Investigations Division and Homeland Security Investigations arrested nine people on a range of allegations. The notice lists offenses that include prostitution, aggravated promotion of prostitution, online promotion of prostitution, possession of a controlled substance, alien inadmissibility, solicitation of prostitution, and engaging in organized criminal activity.
How investigators say the operation worked
Court documents and local reporting indicate that agents started by tracking online escort advertisements. One listing for a woman using the name “Aynoa” raised suspicions and led to months of surveillance that investigators say revealed a cluster of linked ads and a residence where victims were being kept. Reporting by KVIA states that Homeland Security Investigations opened the probe in early 2024 and connected the ads to at least two Cuban nationals who had recently entered the United States.
Attorney's alleged role
The Texas Department of Public Safety says some of the people accused of prostitution were being represented in court by Ortiz Saroldi, and that agents determined he solicited some of those clients for sexual acts. He was arrested and charged with solicitation of prostitution and booked into the El Paso County Jail.
Evidence in the filings
Court filings described by KVIA say agents observed Ortiz Saroldi visiting an east El Paso residence several times in late May 2024, and that financial records show a transfer of $850 linked to the case. The victim interviewed by investigators told agents she was forced to surrender all of her earnings and required to pay roughly $300 a day to her alleged captors, according to the filings.
Who was arrested
Authorities have identified two other suspects as Yasiel Rodriguez-Amaro, 31, and Katherine Ventura-Amaro, 37. Local reporting and booking records show both were taken into custody and face aggravated promotion of prostitution, online promotion of prostitution, and possession charges. Coverage from KTSM and others notes the wider operation resulted in nine arrests, and that some defendants were listed in court documents tied to the promotion and transport of victims.
Legal ramifications and next steps
The defendants face state charges that will be processed in El Paso County courts, where prosecutors will review the evidence and determine what, if any, additional charges to file. The investigation remains ongoing, and authorities have not released the names of the other arrestees, as reported by MyTexasDaily.
