AMARILLO (TX)
ABC 7 KVII [Amarillo, TX]
August 13, 2026
By Jamie Burch, ABC 7 News
A former Amarillo pastor was indicted following his arrest in a prostitution sting.
A Randall County grand jury indicted David Austin Ritchie, 42, on a charge of solicitation of prostitution.
Ritchie, the former senior pastor of Redeemer Christian Church, was among eight men arrested during a June undercover operation conducted by the Texas Department of Public Safety.
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The church fired Ritchie after learning of his arrest. He had served as senior pastor since 2011.
Jorge Luis Lopez-Najera, 24, of Amarillo, who was arrested in the same operation, was also indicted on a charge of solicitation of prostitution.
The cases against the other six men arrested in the sting remain pending.
- John Alexander Grado-Vega, 26, of El Paso – solicitation of prostitution
- Braiden Deion Sellers, 34, of Pascagoula, Mississippi – solicitation of prostitution and unlawful carry of a weapon
- William Theodore Bradley, 47, of Amarillo – solicitation of prostitution
- Jerry Mac Rottenberry, 53, of Amarillo – solicitation of prostitution
- Kody Ray Dick, 37, of Amarillo – solicitation of prostitution and possession of marijuana (less than 2 oz.)
- Travis Jordan Brooks, 35, of Clermont, Florida – solicitation of prostitution