Police: Plot to extort lawmaker may not have been only incident

Spokane police said they are looking for possible Seattle-area victims of a 27-year-old part-time porn star who is accused of blackmailing former state representative Richard Curtis, of La Center, Clark County, and launching a gay-sex scandal that ended the legislator's career.

Cody Castagna was among four Spokane-area men charged with felony extortion in connection with a reported sexual encounter between him and Curtis in October.

Spokane police said Monday that investigators believe similar extortion plots may have targeted other people, who may have been reluctant to contact police. The police urged anyone who may have been a victim of Castagna's to call 509-242-TIPS with information.

Castagna is charged with three counts of second-degree theft of a credit card, one count of second-degree extortion and one count of conspiracy to commit second-degree extortion.

Castagna has claimed that he was not trying to extort Curtis but to get paid the $1,000 he said Curtis agreed to for sex, according to The Associated Press. The three other men were alleged to have helped Castagna and were charged with second-degree extortion and conspiracy to commit second-degree extortion.

According to court documents, Curtis was dressed in women's clothes when he met Castagna in an adult bookstore and arranged to meet later at the legislator's hotel. Later that evening, Curtis woke up and found that Castagna had left the room with Curtis' billfold, credit cards and state Legislature identification, police said.

According to prosecutors, Castagna later called Curtis, demanded $1,000 and threatened to reveal their encounter if he did not pay. Curtis called police to complain that he was being blackmailed, prosecutors said in charging documents.

Curtis, a married father who voted against gay-rights bills in the Legislature, insisted that he wasn't gay but resigned a few days after the incident became public.

Christine Clarridge: 206-464-8983 or cclarridge@seattletimes.com