West Palm Beach Sex Offender Ramon Fuertes Convicted of Failing to Register Properly

A federal jury has convicted Ramon Fuertes, a/k/a “Raymond Cortez,” of West Palm Beach, Florida of four counts of failure of a sex offender to properly register, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2250(a).

According to evidence introduced during the six-day trial, Fuertes had been convicted in 2009 in federal court for sex trafficking of a minor and enticement of a minor. In 2018, upon completion of his federal prison sentence, Fuentes registered as a sex offender. However, in January and May 2023, Fuertes created and used two email addresses and a social networking account. Fuertes did not properly register these internet identifiers with the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office as required by the Federal Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA).

In June 2023, Fuertes vacated his West Palm Beach residence and flew to Georgia to live without notifying the proper authorities in the Southern District of Florida that he was terminating his residence in that jurisdiction and commencing his residence in another jurisdiction. While in Georgia, Fuertes did not properly register as a sex offender and by late July 2023, stopped communicating with law enforcement in Georgia and Florida about his whereabouts. An arrest warrant was issued for Fuertes shortly thereafter.

Fuertes was arrested by the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS) Fugitive Task Force on Oct. 24, 2023, after a lengthy manhunt. A sentencing hearing is scheduled in this matter for July 18, 2024, before U.S. District Judge Melissa Damian.

U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida and U.S. Marshal Gadyaces S. Serralta of the USMS made the announcement. USMS Miami investigated this matter, with assistance from the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office, FBI, and Georgia Bureau of Investigations, as well as the Dekalb County Sheriff’s Office, Gwinnett County Sheriff’s Office, and Gwinnett County Police Department, all in Georgia. Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregory Schiller is prosecuting the case.

The convicted sex offender now faces the consequences of his actions. The District Court for the Southern District of Florida has released related court documents and information on their website at www.flsd.uscourts.gov and http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case number 23-CR-80208.