Cedar Rapids Man Sentenced for False Statement to Postal Inspector

A shocking revelation in the Cedar Rapids criminal landscape as Raymond Cortez, a 65-year-old local resident, has been sentenced to over a year in federal prison for making a false statement to a U.S. Postal Inspector.

Cortez was convicted on December 11, 2012, of lying during an investigation into a fraudulent scheme involving a stolen federal student aid check worth $3,323.00. The evidence presented at trial proved that Cortez falsely denied knowledge of a chase involving his black Hummer, when in fact he was the driver.

The chase was part of an attempt to recover the aforementioned student aid check from its victim, who had been targeted by Cortez and other occupants of the Hummer. The scheme was designed to defraud the United States out of student loan funds.

Today’s sentence, handed down by Chief Judge Linda R. Reade in Cedar Rapids, is a direct result of Cortez’s perjurious behavior. Judge Reade noted that Cortez had no respect for the law and enhanced his sentence accordingly, which includes 21 months’ imprisonment followed by three years’ supervised release.

Cortez was released on bond and must surrender to the U.S. Marshal on April 15, 2013. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Peter Deegan and investigated by both the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the U.S. Department of Education.

For more information on this case, visit the court file at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl, with case file number CR 12-74 LRR.

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