PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti  Two days after a group of 10 Americans were taken into custody in Haiti last month, a man who has emerged as a suspect in a sex trafficking ring and who has an array of other legal charges against him called up the Idaho church where 5 of them attend, portraying himself as an attorney who could help free the group at no cost, interviews show.

After failing to contact any of the approved lawyers provided by the United States Embassy in Port-au-Prince, two relatives of the detained Americans returned the call from the man, Jorge Puello, which came in during Sunday services on Jan. 31, and agreed for him to help on a pro-bono basis, said Terry Michaelson, an attorney for the church, the Central Valley Baptist Church.

It was only later that relatives learned that Mr. Puello  who spoke to the media on behalf of the jailed Americans, fired a Haitian attorney who was representing them and visited the Haitian judge handling the case  lacked a law license and is being sought by law enforcement agencies in El Salvador and the United States, Mr. Michaelson said.

Mr. Puello has dropped out of sight since questions were raised about his background. His cousin, Alejandro Puello, said Saturday he was missing, and calls to Mr. Puello’s cellphone were not answered. A Web site that described Mr. Puello and his cousin as law partners, which Alejandro Puello said was false, was taken down on Friday.