Accused rapist back behind bars in Flathead County
Edward Clay Curtis. (Photo courtesy the Flathead County Sheriff's Office)
A Flathead Valley man accused of raping a minor repeatedly over several years is back behind bars after failing to show up for scheduled court appearances.
Edward Clay Curtis, 57, is expected to appear before Judge Amy Eddy in Flathead County District Court on Thursday for a status hearing in his rape case and be arraigned on a separate felony bail jumping charge. He picked up the latter case after allegedly skipping out on a Sept. 25 pretrial conference.
Curtis returned to Flathead County on Nov. 27 by way of the Yellowstone County Detention Center, according to court and jail records. He is being held in the county jail with bail set at $225,000.
Prosecutors charged Curtis with two counts of sexual intercourse without consent in May 2023 after an individual working on his laptop came across a video of him raping a teenager, according to court documents. The individual told investigators with the Flathead County Sheriff's Office that they were working on the computer at the behest of Curtis' wife, who planned to sell it.
Curtis, his wife and the teenager on the video all rented rooms at the individual's property just outside Columbia Falls, court documents said.
After deputies seized the laptop, they arranged a forensic interview with the teenager. She described Curtis sexually assaulting her between the ages of 12 and 16, beginning when they lived together in Spokane, Washington, according to court documents. She said the alleged abuse occurred several times a week and estimated he had raped her more than 100 times.
Detectives reviewed several videos taken from the laptop, determining at least one occurred at Curtis' home in Flathead County, court documents said.
Curtis denied the accusations during an interview with detectives in 2023. He pleaded not guilty to the rape charges at his May 2023 arraignment.
Though he later posted bond, prosecutors sought the revocation of his release in July 2024 after he allegedly tampered with his GPS monitoring device and later was arrested in Kootenai County, Idaho.
Sexual intercourse without consent is punishable by between two and 100 years in Montana State Prison and a $50,000 fine. Bail jumping carries a maximum penalty of 10 years behind bars.
News Editor Derrick Perkins can be reached at 758-4430 or dperkins@dailyinterlake.com.