Denise and Aaron Quinn Get the Last Word

[0:09] When you're 19, you think you know where you're going to end up, [0:12] but then life has a way of taking its own turns. [0:18] Back in 1993, this young couple was camping. [0:23] In the middle of the night, we were awakened to someone hitting the back of our tent. [0:28] They were ordered out of their tent by a stranger with a gun. [0:32] A towel was put over my head, and my hands and feet were tied up, [0:36] and then my boyfriend was tied up. [0:38] The suspect then carried the female away. [0:42] He brought her down to this bridge? [0:44] Yes. [0:45] You were fighting him as best you could. [0:48] Yeah. [0:49] I was trying to squirm away, and then I was sexually assaulted. [0:53] In the middle of what he was trying to do, [0:57] he said that he saw a light and said he had to go. [1:01] My boyfriend got me untied. [1:04] We called the police and told them what happened, [1:08] and it very much seemed like they maybe didn't believe me. [1:12] I reached out to them many times. [1:15] They [1:15] were trying to find out, have you guys found anything? [1:18] Do you know who did this? [1:20] And nothing. [1:22] She's worried for the last 30-plus years that he was out there and he was going to return. [1:30] In March of 2015, there was this really high-profile kidnapping coming out of Vallejo, [1:36] California. [1:37] Denise Huskins went missing from her boyfriend, Aaron Quinn's, home. [1:42] Kidnappers stormed into Quinn's Vallejo house, bound and drugged him. [1:47] We could hear what sounded... [1:48] It sounded like other people downstairs. [1:50] I was told that I was going to be taken. [1:53] I'm told that there was a ransom demand to get Denise back. [1:57] For the next 48 hours, I was held captive and continuously drugged, and I was raped twice. [2:05] To my surprise, in the middle of the night, he woke me up and said that he was going to release me. [2:12] Relief and joy after Denise Huskins arrived home in Southern California. [2:17] I get my life back, only to have it all come to an end. [2:21] All completely blown apart by the false accusations of law enforcement. [2:26] Vallejo police believe Denise Huskins and her boyfriend staged [2:29] assault, sending their department on a wild and expensive goose chase. [2:33] Things like this never happen. [2:35] So therefore, we can't believe you. [2:37] This was a massive story. [2:40] For months, the world believed that this was a hoax. [2:43] And then suddenly, there's another attack. [2:46] And that's what finally leads to an arrest. [2:49] He was a Marine, then a Harvard law student. [2:51] Then a practicing attorney. [2:53] Now Matthew Muller is accused of being a monster. [2:57] Our hope was now that one person's caught, they would continue to investigate. [3:02] There was still so many questions that were left unanswered. [3:05] Was anyone else involved? [3:07] And what other victims are still out there? [3:10] My name is Nick Borges. [3:15] I did not investigate this case, but I wanted to give Denise and Aaron answers. [3:20] I told them, I've always believed you guys. [3:22] And words are not enough. [3:24] I'm an action guy. [3:25] So. [3:25] I started writing letters to Matthew Muller. [3:28] Dear Mr. Muller, I have followed and come to learn quite a bit about the Vallejo case [3:32] involving Ms. Huskins and Mr. Quinn. [3:35] He ended up responding. [3:37] This is incredible. [3:38] I did not expect him to start confessing. [3:42] In the pre-dawn hours of March 23, 2015, Aaron Quinn and his girlfriend, Denise Huskins, [4:36] were asleep in his Vallejo, California home, unaware they were being watched. [4:42] Around 3 a.m. [4:43] We were awoken to a strange man saying, this is a robbery. [4:49] We are not here to hurt you. [4:50] Stay calm. [4:52] They never saw his face, but he was oddly wearing a wetsuit. [4:57] He said he was part of a group of people there to rob them, but he did all the talking. [5:02] In recalling what happened to them, Denise and Aaron call him The Voice. [5:07] And I saw a flashing white light on the walls and red laser dots scanning the walls. [5:12] The Voice instructed me to talk. [5:13] The Voice told me to tie Aaron up with zip ties, left him on the edge of the bed. [5:17] I'm tied up. [5:18] He makes me hop to my closet. [5:20] I can hear people downstairs going through the kitchen cabinet. [5:24] I can hear a drill running. [5:25] Denise was ordered to go into the same closet. [5:28] There, The Voice also tied her up and made them drink a sedative. [5:33] Blacked out swim goggles were placed over our eyes. [5:36] And eventually, I was told that I was going to be taken for 48 hours. [5:40] And I was going to be held until Aaron could complete some tasks. [5:43] For my release. [5:44] Those tasks included going to a bank for ransom money. [5:48] The Voice took Aaron downstairs to the living room, [5:51] where a security camera had been mounted to monitor him. [5:55] The Voice tells me that if I try to go to the police, they'll kill Denise. [5:59] So I can hear him put Denise in the trunk of my car. [6:03] I just hear Denise say, okay. [6:05] And I'm just hoping that's not gonna be the last thing I hear from her. [6:09] Aaron says he soon passed out from the sedative. [6:12] He woke in a stupor. [6:14] Later that morning, The Voice had taken Aaron's laptop, [6:18] but had left his cell phone saying they would contact him. [6:22] Aaron says he wiggled his hands free from the zip ties, [6:25] but then struggled with whether he should call for help. [6:28] What was that like weighing that decision? [6:30] My thought was if I call the police, I know I'm gonna be safe. [6:34] But then my fear is, am I actually killing Denise? [6:37] Emergency. [6:39] My girlfriend got kicked last night. [6:42] Aaron took the chance and called 911. [6:46] The Vallejo [6:47] Police Department responded. [6:49] As Aaron told them what happened, he says investigators began to question his story. [6:55] I don't blame him for being a little skeptical, but I gave him permission to search everything, [6:59] and I agreed to go down to the station to provide a statement. [7:03] My whole goal, which I thought everyone's goal, was to find Denise. [7:07] Aaron gave the police his cell phone and his clothes to test for evidence. [7:11] He was given prison clothing to change into, and then the lead detective, Matthew Mustard, began to [7:17] question him. [7:18] And it's about 40 minutes into our interview, he basically leans back and says, [7:23] what I'm telling him is far-fetched, and he doesn't believe me. [7:26] Not only did he appear not to believe Aaron, he seemed to be accusing Aaron of killing Denise. [7:38] Denise is gonna be found. [7:40] When I say she's found, she's dead. [7:42] They did not come into your house and kidnap her and take her for ransom. [7:46] That did not happen. [7:48] It didn't. [7:49] No, it did not. [7:50] I have nothing to admit to. [7:52] I didn't do anything. [7:54] Meanwhile, word got in the way of Aaron's arrest. [7:54] Aaron was found dead. [7:57] Aaron was found dead. [7:58] Aaron was found dead. [7:58] Aaron was found dead. [7:58] Aaron was found dead. [7:58] Aaron was found dead. [7:58] Aaron was found dead. [7:58] Aaron was found dead. [7:58] Well, word got out to the media that Denise was missing. [8:01] Officers converged on the home where Denise was reportedly kidnapped. [8:05] Julie Watts is an investigative correspondent for CBS News California. [8:10] I think immediately people were captivated. [8:12] Search teams have been checking area fields. [8:14] Cadaver dogs are among the searchers. [8:16] Folks assumed from the beginning that she was dead. [8:19] And immediately, her boyfriend, Aaron Quinn, was the suspect. [8:23] To Aaron, investigators were so focused on him, he wondered if anyone was looking [8:29] for the people who had actually taken Denise. [8:32] After being placed in the trunk of Aaron's car, she was driven for a bit, [8:36] transferred to the trunk of another car, and driven for hours. [8:40] You think of all the possible things that are going to happen. [8:44] Where am I going to be taken? [8:45] Am I going to be tortured? [8:46] Am I going to have to withstand God knows what? [8:50] The voice took Denise to a secluded home where she was kept blindfolded and sedated. [8:56] He told her he would keep her there until his group received the ransom money. [9:00] She was in and out of consciousness, but remembered him telling her they'd done this before. [9:05] He then raped her. [9:08] The next morning, Denise says she heard someone come to the house. [9:12] Then I heard what sounded like a truck pull up to the house. [9:16] Doors open, close. [9:17] People entered. [9:19] There was whispering. [9:20] And then they got in the car and left. [9:22] The assailant then raped her again. [9:25] I told myself no matter what. [9:26] I'm not going to beg, cower, or scream. [9:29] Because you thought that would keep you alive. [9:31] Right. [9:31] I hoped that that would keep me alive. [9:35] Hours passed. [9:37] But then, even without the ransom, the voice stuck with the plan to release her, just not in Vallejo. [9:44] He asked Denise where her family lived, blindfolded her and sedated her again, and drove hours south. [9:51] He then released her near where she grew up in Huntington Beach, a nearby security camera, called the police. [9:56] Denise? [9:57] Well, the police kept talking about what they found人 [10:01] I heard his car drive off and started walking down this alley and turn and I see the street that I grew up on it was protected [10:08] up on a neighbor called the Huntington Beach Police undercut list [10:13] And the news of Denise's reappearance spread. [10:15] not a mountain Пр [10:18] Uh, the howling noise, but that's still a mystery [10:20] Anyway, Denise finally reappeared on his daylong way out of danger, an just-ipportant [10:27] Denise told The Huntington Beach disparities and websites that the ONT [10:29] officers the same story Erin had but she too began to sense she wasn't being believed it was okay [10:38] yeah yeah but well you know we need to figure out what's going on with Vallejo and so it just felt [10:44] like something wasn't right worried Denise hired an attorney that night as she was making her way [10:51] back to Vallejo the Vallejo police department gave a press conference saying they could not [10:56] substantiate anything Erin had told them and that Denise would not talk to them Mr Quinn [11:03] and Miss Huskins has plundered valuable resources away from our community they essentially called [11:09] the case a hoax the media came up with another label is she a real life gone girl in the first [11:17] few days after the kidnapper released her all of the headlines had the word gone girl in it [11:23] relating it to the blockbuster movie that had just come out I think the year before [11:27] where a beautiful blonde fakes her own kidnapping and it stuck that same night Denise says her [11:34] attorney told the Vallejo police Denise had been raped and asked to set up a sexual assault exam [11:41] hoping DNA evidence could help identify her attacker but Denise says Vallejo police refused [11:47] to order an exam until she talked to them I could hear whoever was on the phone say well [11:53] how do we know she was raped she won't even talk to us you know just tell her not to shower you're [11:58] keeping her clothes on don't wash your hands brush your teeth Denise says Vallejo police made [12:03] her wait until the next morning to come in the judge looking to figure out the truth they [12:13] interviewed Denise for six hours before she went to a hospital for the exam so in a way it's like [12:19] yeah they had to to prove to them that it was worthy enough to have the exam the initial [12:29] testing led nowhere after cooperating with the investigators Denise and Erin feared they might be [12:36] charged with lying to police all the while knowing the people who attacked them were still [12:41] out there and that was I think the most terrifying thing knowing they will do this again we know that [12:48] the only way that will be vindicated and the truth will come out is if they attack another [12:54] family in June 2015 nearly three months after Denise Huskins and Erin Quinn were attacked [13:18] a home invasion was reported in Dublin California about an hour south of the [13:23] Vallejo an intruder came in the wife called 9-1-1 while the husband fought back the intruder [13:33] escaped but in the chaos he left his cell phone behind detectives traced it to this house in South [13:40] Lake Tahoe so they get their investigators together and they show up in the Tahoe cabin [13:53] inside was 38-year-old Matthew Muller he was arrested on the spot for the Dublin attack [14:00] he is a Harvard educated lawyer he is former [14:04] a marine he is not the type of person that you would expect and when they searched the house [14:11] they found some interesting evidence they found Erin's laptop at Muller's cabin authorities also [14:20] searched a stolen car parked nearby investigators looked at the car gps and they saw that it had [14:30] the gps point where the kidnapper had dropped off Denise Huskins and in the back of the car they [14:39] found goggles [14:41] blacked out swim goggles with a single strand of blonde hair the hair was later confirmed to [14:47] be Denise's the goggles the gps address and the laptop all of it was strong evidence supporting [14:54] the bizarre story Denise and Erin had been telling all along the only way they were vindicated was not [15:03] by police work it was by other people being harmed the voice finally had a name Matthew Muller would [15:13] be charged with Denise Huskins' kidnapping and murder charges against Denise Huskins and her husband, [15:14] the two were charged with kidnapping and rape did Muller's arrest make you feel safe a little safer [15:23] the rest made us feel a little safer but we still believe there's other people out there [15:28] but no one else was charged Denise and Erin steeled themselves to face Muller in court [15:36] so you're preparing for him to go to trial what happened well he ended up taking a plea deal Muller [15:43] ultimately received a sentence of 40 years total for the Dublin attack and their attack Denise and [15:50] Aaron had hoped for a life sentence the idea that he'll be too old when he gets out to do something [15:59] like this again I don't think that's true around this time Denise and Aaron filed a civil lawsuit [16:06] against the city of Vallejo claiming defamation and emotional distress they eventually settled [16:12] for 2.5 million dollars did the Vallejo police ever vindicate you no no it was always this case [16:23] was too strange to believe [16:26] police department did not respond to our request for a comment but they did issue a statement after [16:30] the settlement saying the Huskins Quinn case was not publicly handled with the type of sensitivity [16:37] a case of this nature should have been handled with although their case seemed to be over Denise [16:42] and Aaron hoped authorities would continue to investigate Muller for other crimes and possible [16:48] accomplices and there was still so many questions that were left unanswered a big piece of that was [16:57] that he was involved in we just knew that our case wasn't the only one you knew but did you feel like [17:05] anyone was listening to you well no that's the problem Denise and Aaron spent years trying to [17:13] move forward they got married and started a family and eventually decided it was time to tell their [17:21] story in their own words we can take back control of our trauma and maybe use it for good they wrote [17:31] and participated in the netflix series american nightmare which was watched by millions of people [17:39] in 2024. i was hooked as soon as it started one of those people was nick borges the police chief [17:48] in seaside california i'm watching this just thinking i want to reach out to these people [17:53] i want to hug her i want to hug him and just say oh my god i'm so sorry though he wasn't [17:58] involved in their case chief borges reached out to denise on instagram to apologize on behalf of [18:04] all law enforcement when you read that message what did you think i think i got really emotional [18:12] um because it's not we're not asking for a whole lot you know like just to be respected [18:22] and listened to um and treated like we have value it meant the world to feel like we had an ally [18:29] chief borges invited denise and aaron to seaside to speak about their experiences with law [18:34] enforcement i gave them access to everything and it wasn't enough because they had the [18:39] already [18:39] decided i killed her chief borges wanted to do more to help denise and aaron get answers [18:49] i don't have a problem shaking the tree a little bit and flipping rocks he decided to write muller [18:55] in prison i was very honest with him i want to know if you acted alone or not within weeks muller [19:03] wrote back essentially in his first letter back to me he said he acted alone so you start this kind [19:10] of writing relationship with muller yeah he sent me back a second letter and this one was thick in [19:17] both cases it's a no-brainer for him to write the next letter no it's not though muller was [19:21] not against muller in any way in any way he had the last letter muller confessed to two crimes [19:26] in santa clara county in 2009 six years before denise and aaron's attack one was in palo alto [19:35] one was in mountain view he broke in sort of disguised and attempted sexual assault back then [19:44] palo alto police had identified muller as a suspect because he'd been caught prowling in the area but [19:48] They were full-blown confessions with specific details that only the suspect would know. [19:56] Mueller also indicated there were even more crimes, but only teased the details in his letters. [20:02] We know that Mueller did some really awful things. [20:07] Vern Pearson is the district attorney of El Dorado County, where Denise Huskins was held captive. [20:13] Although he was not involved with the original investigation, in 2024, Pearson also offered to help and wanted to speak with Mueller directly. [20:22] Pearson thought the best way to get him to open up more was to use a strategy called science-based interviewing. [20:28] One of the hallmarks of science-based interviewing is speaking to somebody without revealing any judgment you might have about either what they're saying or what you think about them as a person. [20:39] It just strikes me how different what you're talking about is from the way that the Vallejo PD handled Aaron and Denise's case. [20:48] Yeah, they passed judgment and they said, [20:53] And every time he would say, no, that's not what happened, they would cut him off, change the subject, go back to, you know, the theory that they had. [21:05] Pearson was determined to do things differently. [21:08] He brought in a highly trained FBI interviewer who specializes in this technique, and their strategy would pay off. [21:15] I ordered them out of the town, told them I had a gun. [21:36] In November 2024, D.A. Vern Pearson and the FBI interviewer flew to Arizona. [21:41] to speak with Matthew Muller at the prison where he was serving his 40-year sentence to see what else he might confess to and figure out his motivations. [21:51] He's extraordinarily manipulative, and if he's telling you anything, there is a reason why he's telling you what he's telling you. [22:00] With an audio recorder running, Muller claimed he now wanted to be upfront about his past because he'd undergone a religious transformation in prison. [22:09] He shared that in the past, he'd struggled with insomnia. [22:12] Which led to taking long walks at night. [22:15] I started then looking in windows, or I started general curiosity, then went kind of sexual. [22:21] Muller described a long history of voyeurism, admitting that while at Harvard Law School in the early 2000s, he set up a video camera in an office bathroom. [22:32] This evidence video shows him doing the same thing years later while on vacation in Hawaii. [22:38] He installed a video camera in a public restroom so he could look at it. [22:43] The more space they gave Muller to talk, the more depravity he revealed. [22:47] After several hours, he began talking about yet another home invasion on the border of Contra Costa County, just two weeks after he attacked Denise and Aaron. [22:57] That night, I climbed up onto the veranda and came in. [23:03] Muller described using a ladder to climb into a family's house and waking up a mother, father, and their teenage son. [23:10] Tied them up, telling them that we were some sort of criminal group. [23:15] We were a criminal organization that a relative of theirs owed money to. [23:19] He instructed the mother to go to a bank to withdraw a ransom. [23:22] After she returned with $30,000, Muller threatened that if they ever told the police, he would come back and harm them. [23:30] The family never reported it. [23:33] So there was no crime that matched this reported back then at that time? [23:38] No, there was nothing. [23:40] That wasn't the only crime Muller said he'd gotten away with. [23:44] He recalled another attack. [23:46] Which he said was his first, back when he was a teenager in the suburbs of Sacramento. [23:51] Muller said one day he'd walk by some campsites at a state park in nearby Folsom and fixated on a young couple. [23:58] He returned that night with a stolen gun. [24:01] I ordered them out of the town. [24:03] I believe I put them both on their stomachs and asked them to put their hands behind their backs. [24:10] Muller said he tied up the couple, then carried the woman away and down a bike trail. [24:15] I took the woman across to do something. [24:17] Then, he says, he saw a light nearby. [24:21] He sexually assaulted her, then fled. [24:24] I basically forgot about it pretty quickly. [24:27] I just kind of put it out of my mind. [24:29] I was like, it didn't happen. [24:32] Leaving that interview, Pearson set out to prove Muller committed these crimes. [24:38] Thank you. [24:39] Starting with the unreported home invasion. [24:42] The interviewer had him describe the location. [24:45] Then we had him draw a diagram that kind of roughly showed that. [24:48] We looked on Google Maps, and we eventually came up with a community that very closely matched the diagram that he had drawn to us. [24:57] Pearson wondered if the ladder Muller mentioned using might still be there nine years later. [25:02] It was a long shot, but his team asked Contra Costa investigators to search the ravine behind that house. [25:09] You can imagine, it's like, hey, this was never reported to you. [25:12] You guys know anything about it. [25:14] But we think there might be this ladder. [25:16] Would you go look for it? [25:17] And a couple hours later, I get it. [25:19] A couple hours later, I get a text message that they found the ladder. [25:22] But how remarkable is that? [25:24] Pretty remarkable. [25:25] The family, who still lived there, confirmed everything. [25:30] Next, Pearson set out to find the campsite victims. [25:34] His team scoured Folsom and Sacramento County records until finally one of his staffers found a four-page state parks report of an incident from August 7, 1993. [25:46] At the time, Muller was just 16. [25:50] We look at it, and it's very close to what he described. [25:53] I mean, virtually identical. [25:55] Victim exited the tent with two sleeping bags and pillows, and as told by subject to lay face down in the camp. [26:01] This had to be it. [26:03] Pearson notified the Sacramento County District Attorney's Office, and criminal investigators Kevin Papineau and Michelle Hendricks took over the investigation. [26:13] Back in the day, in the 1990s, did it look pretty much like this? [26:18] Essentially up here. [26:19] It didn't. [26:20] It did. [26:22] The campsites are no longer there, and original investigators have died. [26:26] So Papineau and Hendricks started by retracing Muller's steps that night. [26:31] So he brings her up here, and again, she has no idea what's going on. [26:38] Yeah, she doesn't know where she's going. [26:40] My goodness. [26:42] And at night, this place is pitch black. [26:44] It must be terrifying. [26:46] Absolutely terrifying. [26:47] Yeah. [26:48] From the report, they knew the victim's boyfriend had found her on this footbridge along the bus. [26:52] And they had called for help. [26:53] Park Ranger showed up. [26:54] A Folsom PD officer showed up. [26:55] And they took a statement from them. [26:56] And then they left. [26:58] The officers left. [26:59] Papineau and Hendricks also found photos officers took that night, which showed a gun they believed Muller dropped when he fled. [27:00] With no other leads to follow, they reached out to the victims. [27:01] And how old were you in 1993? [27:02] I was 19. [27:03] In the middle of the night, we were awakened to someone hitting the bus. [27:04] I was 19. [27:05] I was 19. [27:06] I was 19. [27:07] I was 19. [27:08] I was 19. [27:09] I was 19. [27:10] I was 19. [27:11] I was 19. [27:12] I was 19. [27:13] I was 19. [27:14] I was 19. [27:15] I was 19. [27:16] I was 19. [27:17] I was 19. [27:18] I was 19. [27:19] I was 19. [27:20] In the middle of the night, we were awakened to someone hitting the back of our tent. [27:24] We spoke to the female victim in 2025. [27:28] She's asked us not to show her face and to call her Lynn. [27:32] This is the first time she's speaking publicly about what happened to her. [27:36] The only thing I can really remember is just praying, praying for this to stop, praying for him to get away, praying that he doesn't kill me. [27:43] Lynn says after she and her boyfriend called for help that night, it didn't feel like the officers were taking her assault seriously. [27:51] It very much felt like they maybe didn't believe me or believe my boyfriend, just by their line of questioning. [28:00] Like what? [28:01] Like with my boyfriend, they asked him, you mean you didn't see the gun? [28:05] What do you mean you didn't see the gun? [28:07] Instead of just listening to us and believing what we were telling them. [28:11] She says she called the Parks Department for months asking for updates, but nothing ever came of it. [28:17] In fact, I even stopped telling people about it as time went on. [28:22] Lynn and her husband were on the phone. [28:24] Lynn and her boyfriend eventually married and drew strength from each other. [28:28] But Lynn says it was difficult to ever feel truly safe. [28:32] Is there a way to describe the weight that you carried? [28:35] It's kind of hard to describe because it's just kind of part of who you are now. [28:40] For many years I didn't go by myself out at night. [28:43] Even during the daytime I'd make sure I would keep an eye over my shoulder of who's around and be aware of my surroundings at all times. [28:50] I didn't feel comfortable wearing shoes that I felt like I couldn't run in. [28:53] So like flip flops or sandals just in case I need to run. [28:57] But that began to change when she first spoke with investigators Papineau and Hendricks. [29:04] I felt this sense of relief. [29:08] I knew that I was being believed. [29:10] I knew that something was getting done about this finally. [29:15] And Lynn felt more relief when she learned her attacker was now behind bars. [29:21] But she wanted him to be held accountable for what he'd done to her. [29:25] No, you didn't get away with this. [29:27] You didn't just move on with your life and forgot that it happened. [29:31] You don't get to do that. [29:32] To learn that he was 16 years old the first time he attacked a couple. [29:55] It made a lot of sense but it's also just incredibly disturbing. [30:00] Denise Huskins and Aaron Quinn had long suspected Matthew Muller had attacked before. [30:05] But to learn the details and have the crimes confirmed by investigators was still devastating. [30:12] A lot of people have suffered. [30:14] I think it's a way of invading people's lives to terrorize. [30:23] In late 2024, Matthew Muller was charged with the attempted rapes in Santa Clara County. [30:31] The first attacks he'd confessed to in the letters. [30:34] He was flown back to California to face those charges. [30:38] There he was also charged with attacking the family in Contra Costa. [30:42] While several other people were charged with the attacks, [30:45] Matthew Muller was also charged with the attacks of the family in Santa Clara County. [30:48] While several other people were charged with the attacks of the family in Contra Costa. [30:51] While sitting in the Santa Clara County jail, Muller wrote another letter. [30:56] He sent a letter to Nick Borges essentially indicating he had additional information that he wanted to provide to Denise and Aaron. [31:04] He's trying to lure Denise and Aaron into coming and talking to him. [31:07] I read that letter exactly that way. [31:10] DA Vern Pearson thinks meeting with Denise, in particular, may have been Muller's objective for confessing all along. [31:18] DA Pearson was like, he's confessing to certain things for a reason. [31:21] They're all in California. [31:23] I think he wants to get back to California in hopes that he can meet with you. [31:27] Even though they were fully aware Muller may have ulterior motives, [31:33] Denise and Aaron did still want to talk with him. [31:36] Muller had confirmed and given details about other crimes he had committed, [31:41] but still maintained he acted alone in theirs. [31:44] Denise and Aaron are adamant they heard other people during their attack. [31:50] I felt like maybe, of all people, he would be more honest with us. [31:54] But having already spent many hours interviewing Muller, Pearson did not want them in a room together. [32:00] I didn't think that was a good idea. [32:03] They came up with a compromise. [32:05] On February 13, 2025, Muller and his attorney met with Pearson, the FBI interviewer, and Chief Borges at the Santa Clara County jail. [32:15] Denise and Aaron were there too, watching from another room. [32:20] Denise, Aaron. [32:21] We're all present in the building today and observing this live. [32:24] They had let him know early on in the interview, they're observing, they're not coming in. [32:29] I think that irritated him. [32:31] The FBI interviewer had said that conversation was very different. [32:35] When asked why he wanted this meeting, Muller claimed he was there to help Denise and Aaron, mostly. [32:41] I had an obligation to make it possible for them to visit with me to get closure on this. [32:48] It's in a way that I need closure as well. [32:50] But when the FBI agent pushed for the answer to Denise and Aaron's question... [32:54] They are continuing to suffer in the sense that they continue to believe that there are other people. [33:00] At first, Muller didn't directly respond and talked in circles. [33:04] The only other information I could provide, and it does go back a bit into the religious matter. [33:09] So, you know, if you are having events that seem to be described by the Bible or the Koran or anything else... [33:16] I mean, he's just an incredibly frustrating human. [33:19] Eventually, Muller again denied he'd had accomplices. [33:23] I guess the best I can do is say, look, every other thing that I've done was a load hacker situation. [33:29] And I'm just sort of a loader generally. [33:32] But Muller did go into detail about how he said he had tricked Denise and Aaron into believing he was working with a group. [33:41] He did various steps to make it look as though he had somebody else with him. [33:46] There was multiple people. [33:47] He told us that he had used a device that he could... [33:51] make it sound as though he was talking to somebody downstairs and getting a response using a recorder. [33:57] I think there was like a whisper track or something like that. [34:00] And then I pretended to be whispering to someone at the same time. [34:04] Do you believe what Muller was saying about, well, I was pretending that there were other people in the room? [34:13] I mean, I don't believe everything Muller says. [34:15] I know what we saw. We know what we heard. [34:19] Although Denise and Aaron didn't get the answers they'd hoped for, [34:22] they say that confronting Muller... [34:24] even through the interviewers... [34:26] was a form of reckoning. [34:28] For us, it was more showing that we're not scared of you. [34:32] We see you. We see who you are. [34:34] And they were determined to see Matthew Muller face justice for all the crimes their work and persistence had uncovered. [34:43] In June 2025, he was finally charged with Lynn's attack [34:47] and faced a life sentence for each of the additional crimes he was now charged with. [34:52] Denise hoped this would finally lock him away forever. [34:57] I don't believe if he's ever free that he could help himself. [35:03] I feel like he'll always figure out a way to terrorize someone in some way. [35:08] By the summer of 2025, Matthew Muller was convicted [35:25] of all the charges brought as a result of the new investigation spurred by Denise and Aaron. [35:31] At Muller's sentencing, Lynn read a victim impact statement three decades in the making. [35:38] I think for so many years, feeling like my voice was silenced, [35:42] feeling like my voice could be heard finally felt very empowering. [35:48] I got the last word. Now you get to be silenced. [35:55] Muller was sentenced to four life terms. [35:58] How does that feel that he's now serving four life sentences for four crimes [36:05] that he might have never confessed to had you not written that letter? [36:11] Goosebumps. I have them right now. [36:15] Lynn says she felt relief knowing Muller would stay locked up while she walked free. [36:21] She's finally able to live without fear and enjoy old pastimes and new ones. [36:28] How are you with going outdoors and camping now? [36:31] It's easier now. [36:34] And one of the ways that we were able to do that was through playing disc golf. [36:43] It gave me something to focus on outdoors that felt safe again. [36:48] She is also connected with Denise. [36:53] She actually reached out to me on Instagram. [36:58] When I saw, you know, [36:59] I'm Matthew Muller's first victim, like, I was like, what? [37:04] I wanted to say thank you and just let her know that 32 years of waiting [37:11] was finally over because of her continuing to seek answers. [37:17] While Lynn finally has answers, [37:19] Denise and Aaron still question whether Muller acted alone. [37:23] DA Vern Pearson hoped forensics could prove if there was another assailant. [37:27] Pearson learned Vallejo police had only done preliminary testing on Denise's rape kit, [37:32] so his office had it fully tested in 2025. [37:36] Well, the results are essentially inconclusive. [37:39] Pearson says the test showed a mixture of DNA, including Muller's, [37:43] so they can't rule out the possibility that Denise could also have been assaulted by someone else. [37:49] But Pearson doesn't think so. [37:51] Based on everything I know, I don't believe that there was an accomplice. [37:56] I think that was a ruse that he created and perpetuated very successfully. [38:01] Chief Borges isn't surprised. [38:03] He wasn't so sure. [38:05] Do you think Muller had accomplices? [38:07] I think it's very possible. [38:08] I certainly think it's very possible. [38:12] But Borges and Pearson both believe Muller committed additional crimes. [38:18] Everywhere that man traveled, he was a threat. [38:21] And Chief Borges says it's possible Muller went even further. [38:26] One of the times I interviewed him, I asked him if he ever killed anybody. [38:31] It just seemed like an appropriate question. [38:33] He kind of told me that he didn't have the heart to do that. [38:35] Do you believe him? [38:36] Not fully. [38:39] I don't fully believe him. [38:41] I mean, at what point do you actually stop? [38:43] Chief Borges says he hasn't stopped investigating, looking for other crimes and accomplices. [38:53] If anyone else is involved, we're coming for you. [38:57] Just trust me. [38:58] We're going to get you if you're involved. [39:00] Today, Denise and Aaron continue to speak to law enforcement, [39:03] trying to change how officers interview victims and suspects. [39:07] Denise has said not being believed was more traumatic in many ways to her [39:13] than the actual assaults themselves. [39:15] If that doesn't open your eyes in law enforcement, something's wrong with you. [39:19] Chief Borges says that is the biggest lesson he's learned from Denise and Aaron. [39:26] We have to believe victims. [39:28] When they come forward, we have to listen to what they say and follow the evidence. [39:33] Despite all they've been through, the Quinns say that while their case revealed a lot of problems, [39:38] it also shows the solutions. [39:40] We understand it's a really hard job. [39:43] People make mistakes. [39:45] What you're hoping is that people recognize mistakes, [39:48] they learn from mistakes, and it changes their actions going forward. [39:51] Again, it's bittersweet to be able to be here and reclaim this as something positive. [39:56] And these unlikely advocates are determined to use their voices for good. [40:01] ...power over us and our life. [40:03] I don't think anyone would blame you if the two of you said, [40:07] OK, enough. We don't need to talk about this anymore. [40:11] Why not just move on? [40:13] I think there's a sense of responsibility. [40:18] The publicity was so damaging to us in the beginning, [40:22] and so I feel like, in a way, having this strange, unique position, [40:28] it almost seems irresponsible to not utilize it in a positive way that can maybe help others.