A Buffalo man convicted of murder in a deadly shooting on the city's West Side has been sentenced to 15 years to life in prison. Moises Cortijo, now 49, was sentenced Tuesday morning for the July 2025 killing of 35-year-old David Ortiz-Ramos on the 300 block of Busti Avenue, according to the Erie County District Attorney's Office.
Cortijo was convicted on one count of second-degree murder and one count of second-degree criminal possession of a weapon, as reported by WKBW. The Erie County District Attorney's Office says a jury reached that verdict on July 8, 2026, deliberating for less than two hours following a two-day trial in New York State Supreme Court, according to a press release from Erie County's District Attorney's Office. Cortijo had been held without bail since his arraignment on October 14, 2025, before Erie County Court Judge Suzanne Maxwell Barnes, the same office's earlier release noted.
The case traces back to a shooting on the 300 block of Busti Avenue in July 2025. Buffalo Police responded to the shooting. Ortiz-Ramos was transported by ambulance to ECMC, where he was pronounced dead. The district attorney's office has described Cortijo as a participant in the deadly shooting.
Cortijo's Sentence
Second-degree murder is a Class A-I felony under New York Penal Law Section 125.25, according to New York State's Open Legislation database. Cortijo was sentenced to 15 years to life.
State Supreme Court Justice Debra Givens presided over the sentencing. Givens was appointed to the New York State Court of Claims, according to background published by the University at Buffalo, which notes she was the first woman and first person of color appointed to the Court of Claims in the state's 8th Judicial District.
Buffalo Police Detectives Mark White and Franklyn King worked on the homicide investigation. Major Crimes Bureau Chief Christopher S. Safulko and Raise the Age/Motor Vehicle Theft Insurance Fraud Unit Chief Nicholas Marino handled the prosecution, per the DA's office. Erie County District Attorney Michael J. Keane publicly commended the detectives following sentencing.
Another West Side Homicide Prosecution
Safulko, the bureau chief who helped secure Cortijo's conviction, also co-prosecuted another West Side Buffalo homicide case that resulted in a 20-year prison sentence this month for a separate fatal shooting from October 2025, as reported by Niagara Frontier Publications; the defendant in that case pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter.
