Herlinda's former husband, Ulises Soto, picked up their two young sons from her three-bedroom house in the 1500 block of Bill Ogden Drive in El Paso, Texas on July 2, 1993. He returned to the house on July 5 at 6:00 p.m. to drop the children off. Herlinda and her car had vanished and there was obvious evidence of a violent struggle inside the residence; police stated it was the bloodiest scene they'd seen in years. Blood was smeared on the garage floor and in the hallway of the house, and a trail of blood lead out to the driveway where the trunk of her car would have been. There was no sign of forced entry to the house, but one of the garage doors did not lock.

Herlinda's vehicle, a 1989 Mercury Tracer, was discovered abandoned later that day in the 12400 block of Rojas Drive in El Paso. Her blood was found inside. There was no sign of Herlinda at the scene and she has never been seen again.

Herlinda was employed as a nurse at the time of her disappearance, and was also an Army reservist. She is a veteran of Operation Desert Storm and served eight months in Saudi Arabia as part of her military duty. She had just gotten custody of her two sons when she vanished. Ulises had them every other weekend; he lived about five miles away. He could account for his whereabouts at the time Herlinda vanished and has thus been ruled out as a suspect.

Herlinda's loved ones say she was a responsible and conscientious woman who would be unlikely to leave without telling anyone. Authorities believe that Herlinda was assaulted inside the house and then taken away against her will by person(s) unknown. They do not believe robbery was a motive, as Herlinda kept no valuables in her home. Foul play is suspected in her case. Herlinda's case remains unsolved.