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BREAKING: The priest was also a registered sex offender, arrested at JFK after being found by Interpol, the DA said.
By Lisa Finn (Patch Staff) – April 24, 2017
HAMPTON BAYS, NY — A man extradited back to the United States after sexually abusing a girl, 6, in Hamptons Bays, was a defrocked priest, according to Suffolk County District Attorney Thomas Spota.
Augusto Cortez pleaded not guilty Monday at his arraignment before Judge Barbara Kahn in Riverhead, Spota said.
Cortez, 53, pleaded not guilty to the three charges in the indictment: first degree criminal sexual act, first degree sexual abuse, and endangering the welfare of a child, Spota said.
The court remanded the defendant without bail and set a return date of May 15; a temporary order of protection was issued for the victim, Spota said.
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