Ex-cop accused of scamming 76-year-old woman to gain control of her estate  

A former Bucks County police officer is accused of scamming a wealthy woman in her 70s -- whom he was having an emotional affair with -- into signing her last will and testament in order to gain control of her more than $500,000 estate.

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Carlito Cortez, 59, of Richboro, Pennsylvania, surrendered to police on Tuesday, May 13, 2025, following a Grand Jury investigation.

Cortez worked as a part-time officer with the Yardley Borough Police Department from 2013 to 2023 and with the Langhorne Borough Police Department for eight years before resigning in the fall, according to officials.

Investigators said Cortez met the 76-year-old woman in May 2020. The woman reported in March 2020 that two rings valued at $25,000 were stolen from a safe inside her home. Cortez – who was a Langhorne police officer at the time – was assigned to the investigation. While the woman suspected that a relative was responsible for the theft, the rings were never found and no charges were ever filed, according to officials.

While investigating, Cortez showed interest in the woman’s safe, repeatedly asking her to see what was inside, according to the criminal complaint. After the investigation stalled, Cortez continued to visit the victim and their relationship evolved over a three-year span, officials said. A witness reported seeing Cortez’s police vehicle outside the victim’s home for several nights a week over extended periods, often into the morning, according to the criminal complaint.

The victim told investigators that she eventually fell in love with Cortez who told her he loved her as well but only when she did things for him, officials said. The victim also said their relationship was not sexually intimate, according to the criminal complaint.

At the time of their relationship, Cortez was also a contractor and offered to do home repairs for the victim but most of the projects were left unfinished, officials said.

Near the end of 2022, Cortez convinced the victim to get in-home nursing care and arranged for another woman whom he was having an affair with at the time to become her caretaker, according to investigators. The victim paid the woman $2,900 over four months before telling her she didn’t need her services anymore, officials said. Investigators determined Cortez’s mistress was not a nurse and was not licensed or insured as a caregiver.

Around the same time, Cortez began talking to the victim about him becoming her power of attorney, officials said. Cortez also enlisted a friend to vouch for him, according to investigators. The friend – who worked in law enforcement and was also a former attorney – told the victim Cortez was a trustworthy family man, according to the criminal complaint.

Cortez then presented the victim with documents he had printed online for her to sign, officials said. The victim said she was interested in giving Cortez medical power of attorney but not financial power of attorney or the beneficiary of her estate, according to the criminal complaint. After signing the papers, the victim noticed the words, “last will and testament,” officials said. Cortez then rushed off and told the woman he would send her a copy but never did, according to the criminal complaint.

In May 2023, Cortez moved into the victim’s home for a few weeks, keeping personal belongings at her house including his police uniforms and equipment but would also return to his home in Richboro where he lived with his wife, officials said.

During a search through Cortez’s Richboro home in October 2024, investigators found two older wills and testaments belonging to the victim which she said she had not authorized him to possess, officials said. While being questioned about a more recent last will and testament that the victim said he fraudulently convinced her to sign, Cortez gave investigators inconsistent information on its whereabouts and it was never found, officials said.

During his testimony before the Grand Jury, Cortez lied about how he obtained the victim’s wills and what became of the newer will, officials said.

The Grand Jury recommended charges against Cortez of criminal attempt to commit theft by deception, securing execution of documents by deception, theft by deception, receiving stolen property, false swearing, perjury and official oppression. He was arraigned with bail set at $150,000 unsecured and was ordered by a judge to have no contact with the victim.

NBC10 reached out to Cortez’s attorney who had no comment.