The Texas case of a midwife illegally performing abortions has heated up as two more people of interest have been arrested in connection with unlawful abortions.
On Monday, March 27, 2025, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced the arrest of Maria Margarita Rojas, a Texas midwife who operated three clinics throughout the Houston area where she has been accused of carrying out illegal abortions as well as practicing medicine without a license.
Case overview
Rojas has been charged under the Texas Human Life Protection Act for performing an illegal abortion, a second-degree felony that carries a potential penalty of up to 20 years in prison. Additionally, she could face civil penalties of at least $100,000 per abortion done in violation of the law. She also faces separate charges for practicing medicine without a license which is a third-degree felony under the Texas Occupations Code Section 165.159 that can lead to up to 10 years in prison and may also include a fine of up to $10,000.
The investigation into Rojas’ facilities began when a complaint was filed with the state Health and Human Services Commission, which alleged that two women received abortions at her Waller clinic, including one woman who received an abortion while three months pregnant in September 2023 and another woman received an abortion at eight weeks gestation in January 2025.
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According to court documents obtained by CBS affiliate KHOU 11, investigators set up surveillance of Rojas’ three facilities and even went through trash bags looking for evidence.
On March 6, when Rojas was arrested, investigators interviewed a woman that they saw at her clinic in Waller County. The woman explained she had been concerned about her pregnancy and that Rojas had been presented by staff as a gynecologist. Rojas then informed the woman she was four weeks pregnant and only had a 9% chance of a successful pregnancy and proceeded to prescribe a chemical abortion.
"As a result of her mistaken belief that the gynecologist was in fact a licensed physician in the State of Texas, she relied on the gynecologist's medical advice and opted for the treatment regimen suggested," court documents said.
During further investigation, it was discovered that Rojas, who was not a licensed gynecologist and was operating outside of her scope of medicine as a midwife, also employed other unlicensed employees.
Additional arrests
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has since announced that Rubildo Labanino Matos was arrested on March 8 and Jose Manuel Cendan Ley was arrested on March 17 concerning the Rojas case.
The AG’s press release says 54-year-old Rubildo Labanino Matos was arrested upon her return to the United States from Cuba for conspiring to practice medicine without a license, as her nurse practitioner license is currently on probation by the Board of Nursing.
Additionally, 29-year-old Ley was arrested for the unlawful performance of an abortion and unlicensed practice of medicine as well as allegedly performing illegal medical procedures as a medical assistant at Clinica Waller Latinoamericana in Waller, Texas, and assisting Rojas in providing at least one illegal abortion.
The latest
The multiple facilities Rojas operated include Clinica Waller Latinoamericana, located in an independent building in Waller, Clinica Latinoamericana Telge, in a Cypress, Texas, shopping center, and Latinoamericana Medical Clinic, in Spring, Texas, the latter which is within walking distance of a local high school.
All three facilities were initially shut down when Paxton’s Healthcare Program Enforcement Division filed for a temporary restraining order, and on March 27, Paxton obtained a temporary injunction against the network of abortion clinics that ensures they will not reopen following the expiration of the temporary restraining order until the case is resolved.
Maria Margarita Rojas appeared in court on March 27, repeatedly pleading the fifth on the stand.
At one point during the hearing, Click2Houston reports that she appeared “to give a small smile” to which Paxton’s legal team told the judge, “It looks like she’s enjoying this.” Rojas was later released on bail with an ankle monitor and her midwife license remains suspended.
Pro-life response
In Texas, abortions are prohibited except in cases when a physician determines, with reasonable medical judgment, that the pregnancy poses a life-threatening condition or a serious risk of substantial impairment of a major bodily function.
“Individuals killing unborn babies by performing illegal abortions in Texas will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law, and I will not rest until justice is served,” the Attorney General said in a statement. “I will continue to fight to protect life and work to ensure that anyone guilty of violating our state’s pro-life laws is held accountable.”
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While Rojas’ legal team continues to request that her facilities be allowed to reopen and insist that without them women cannot get the care they need, over 325 pregnancy help organizations across Texas remain available to provide life-affirming support to women facing unplanned pregnancies. Fourteen of those pregnancy help centers alone are in the counties where Rojas’ facilities were located.
