Matthew Muller, Kidnapping, California 2015

Matthew Muller, a 39-year-old former U.S. Marine from South Lake Tahoe, was sentenced to 40 years in prison for the kidnapping of Aaron Quinn and Denise Huskins in Vallejo, California, on March 23, 2015.

According to court documents, Muller broke into the Mare Island home of Quinn and Huskins between 3:00 a.m. and 5:00 a.m. Armed with a stun gun and a simulated firearm with a laser sight, Muller ordered the victims to lie still while he bound them, blindfolded them, and forced them to drink a sedative.

Muller then placed Huskins in the trunk of a car and drove her to his residence in South Lake Tahoe, where he kept her under his complete control. Muller sent Quinn two emails demanding ransom for a total of $17,000, but Huskins was released on March 25, 2015, in Huntington Beach, with no ransom ever being paid.

During and after the kidnapping, Muller sent emails to a reporter in San Francisco that falsely claimed, among other things, that the kidnapping had been carried out by a group of elite criminals who were perfecting their kidnapping-for-ransom tactics.

The case remained unsolved until after June 8, 2015, when Dublin Police Services of the Alameda County Sheriff’s office arrested Muller and searched his South Lake Tahoe residence. The FBI then conducted its own follow-up investigation and searches that included Muller’s South Lake Tahoe residence, a vehicle in Reno, two other residences, and Muller’s Vallejo storage locker.

The FBI analysis of Muller’s computers uncovered a sound recording that simulated people whispering to each other and a sound recording consistent with the instructions given to Quinn and Huskins. FBI analysts also discovered video recordings of Muller together with Huskins in his South Lake Tahoe residence, which showed him blindfolded and fully under his control. Further video recordings showed Muller in his residence arranging cameras in a bedroom, trying out their viewing angles, and then twice sexually assaulting the blindfolded Huskins.

In sentencing Muller, U.S. District Judge Troy L. Nunley referred to the defendant’s actions as heinous and held him responsible for his actions. U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert said, “The sentence imposed today reflects the egregiousness of Muller’s conduct in this case. Muller had advantages in life that most people only dream of, yet he used his considerable intelligence to plan and execute the physical assault and psychological torture of two innocent strangers.”

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