An El Paso attorney was arrested in an investigation into an international network of human smugglers on a solicitation of a prostitute charge involving a woman allegedly held hostage by sex traffickers, authorities said.
Mario Ortiz Saroldi, 51, a criminal defense and immigration attorney, was arrested with eight other people in connection with a yearlong investigation of a trafficking scheme that involved forcing a woman into prostitution to pay off her smuggling debts, Texas Department of Public Safety spokesperson Sgt. Eliot Torres said in a news release.
Mario Ortiz Saroldi
Ortiz Saroldi could not immediately be reached for comment. Ortiz Saroldi’s attorney Omar Carmona declined to comment on the arrest.
Ortiz Saroldi is accused of paying to go on “dates” with a Cuban migrant who was being kept at an East El Paso home and allegedly forced into prostitution, a criminal complaint affidavit states.
Ortiz Saroldi has been a lawyer since 2004, and the Texas Department of Public Safety news release stated that he is “believed to be representing some of those involved.” He is listed in court records as the attorney representing a suspect named Tamara Batista-Ramirez.
The news release names only two other suspects arrested: Yasiel Rodriguez-Amaro, 31, of El Paso, and Katherine Ventura-Amaro, 37, also of El Paso.
Court documents also name Batista-Ramirez among the nine suspects arrested.
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The news release states the names of the other suspects are not being released because the investigation remains ongoing.
Rodriguez-Amaro and Ventura-Amaro were each arrested on one count each of online promotion of prostitution, engaging in organized criminal activity – aggravated promotion of prostitution, and possession of a controlled substance.
Batista-Ramirez was arrested on suspicion of aggravated promotion of prostitution.
Agents find victim in online prostitution ads
The investigation began when a Homeland Security Investigations agent was investigating online prostitution ads that led to the discovery of a Cuban migrant being sold for sex, a criminal complaint affidavit states. The name on the ad was “Aynoa.”
The agent “knew from experience that an advertisement for a Cuban female was not commonly seen in El Paso,” the affidavit states.
Yasiel Rodriguez-Amaro
The photos in the ad matched another woman, who has not been arrested, according to jail records. The agent was able to find the woman’s real name. The woman had crossed into the U.S. at an El Paso port of entry with another Cuban woman, who is named as the victim in the affidavit.
The first woman had crossed the border on Jan 27, 2024, with the victim. Immigration documents showed the woman was living at a home in the 3400 block of Touchstone Place in East El Paso. The agent conducted an online search of a phone number listed on the immigration documents and found 11 ads posted on websites known for advertising prostitutes.
One of the females in the ads was the victim, the affidavit states. An online search of the home showed that the house had the same-colored walls as those seen in the ads.
Cuban migrant allegedly forced into prostitution to pay off debt
Agents began “conducting extensive surveillance operations” from April 2024 through June 2024 on the Touchstone house.
Ortiz Saroldi was allegedly seen driving to the house about 6:25 p.m., May 22, 2024, in a black GMC truck. He got out of the truck and walked to the door, where he was seen leaving the house with the victim, the affidavit states. Ortiz Saroldi and the victim returned about 10:30 p.m.
Katherine Ventura-Amaro
Agents again spotted Ortiz Saroldi coming back to the house about 3:45 a.m. on May 25, 2025, and leaving with the victim. He and the victim returned at about 10:30 a.m., the affidavit states.
On May 26, Ortiz Saroldi went to the house about 10:10 p.m. and left with the victim and another woman, the affidavit states. The three of them arrived back at the house about 2 a.m. on May 27, 2024.
Ortiz Saroldi allegedly picked up the victim another two times on May 30, 2024, and May 31, 2024, the affidavit states.
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Texas DPS Criminal Investigations Division, Homeland Security Investigations and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement Removal Operations agents conducted an arrest operation on June 26, 2025.
Agents interviewed the victim. She told agents she was forced to give all her financial income and pay daily fees of about $300 in U.S. currency to Rodriguez-Amaro and Batista-Ramirez to pay off her debt, the affidavit states. The news release states the debt was owed to the smugglers who brought her into the U.S.
The victim added she was forced to live at the Touchstone house with Rodriguez-Amaro until the debt was completely paid, the affidavit states. Rodriguez-Amaro and Batista-Ramirez allegedly created the online prostitution ads, the victim told agents.
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Ortiz Saroldi made arrangements with Batista-Ramirez to go on “dates” with the victim for an undisclosed amount of money, she told agents, the affidavit states. Ortiz Saroldi allegedly took the woman to restaurants and a hotel in Downtown El Paso, where they had sex, the affidavit states.
The affidavit states that agents found financial transactions between Ortiz Saroldi and Rodriguez-Amaro showing that Ortiz Saroldi paid $850 to Rodriguez-Amaro. The memo on one of the transactions included the names of the victim and Batista-Ramirez.
El Paso lawyer, suspects arrested
Ortiz Saroldi was arrested Oct. 8 on one count of solicitation of prostitution. He was booked into the El Paso County Jail on a $7,500 bond. He posted bail and was released on Oct. 9, jail records show.
The affidavit does not say whether Ortiz Saroldi knew if the woman was being held hostage.
Tamara Batista-Ramirez
Rodriguez-Amaro was arrested on the online promotion of prostitution, engaging in organized criminal activity – aggravated promotion of prostitution, and possession of a controlled substance charges on Sept. 17. He was booked into the El Paso County Jail on a bond totaling $86,500. He remains jailed as of Wednesday, Oct. 29.
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Batista-Ramirez was arrested April 21 on suspicion of aggravated promotion of prostitution. She was booked into jail on a $10,000 bond. She posted bail April 22 and was released from jail.
Ventura-Amaro is not listed in jail records.
Aaron Martinez covers the criminal justice system for the El Paso Times. He may be reached at amartinez1@elpasotimes.com or on X/Twitter @AMartinezEPT.
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: El Paso lawyer, 8 others arrested in sex trafficking investigation