Netflix makes documentary about Denise Huskins kidnapping case

It was labelled the real life Gone Girl, but what happened on March 23 back in 2015 wasn’t as straightforward as investigators first believed it to be.

It was a case that had people around the world scratching their heads and asking the question; is Denise Huskins the real life Gone Girl?

On March 23, 2015, Ms Huskins vanished from her home in California, which she shared with boyfriend Aaron Quinn, before mysteriously appearing two days later in her hometown.

Mr Quinn called police the day after his partner’s disappearance, claiming a man in a wetsuit had broken into their home with bright lights and armed with a taser, drugged him and forced Ms Huskins to tie him up before she was kidnapped.

A ransom was sent for $11,000 – and when she turned up two days later in Orange Country she was unscathed and had an overnight bag.

Denise Huskins was sleeping at her boyfriend’s house in 2015. Picture: Netflix

The circumstances around the case had police finding it difficult to believe a kidnapping had even taken place. Instead, they insisted it was a hoax by the couple. It led everyone to refer to them the real life Gone Girl couple, based on the 2012 book by Gillian Flynn.

But, what actually happened was so much more bizarre, and the case is being brought to light once again thanks to a Netflix documentary called American Nightmare, which will premiere on January 17.

When Mr Quinn called police, he was asked to explain what had happened on the night. Police didn’t believe him. Instead, they thought he had something to do with his girlfriend’s brief disappearance. A month before, Ms Huskins had discovered text messages on his phone with his ex-fiance planning to get back together.

On March 22, Ms Huskins went to Mr Quinn’s home to discuss their relationship and if it was even worth continuing, according to ABC 7 News. His ex-fiance had only recently moved out with her belongings.

Denise Huskins and boyfriend Aaron Quinn were woken up by a kidnapper. Picture: Netflix

After talking for hours, the couple went to bed at midnight when Mr Quinn claimed they were woken up at 3am.

“This is a robbery,” a voice said, he claimed. When the kidnapper took Ms Huskins, he put her in the boot of her boyfriend’s car and drove away in it.

The day Ms Huskins returned home, Vallejo police spokesman Kenny Park said: “It was such an incredible story, we initially had a hard time believing it, and upon further investigation, we couldn’t substantiate any of the things he was saying.”

They accused the couple of creating a hoax, despite them insisting their innocence. A day after Ms Huskins was found, someone contacted the San Francisco Chronicle claiming to be the kidnapper, annoyed at the hoax claim. There were even images of where she’d been held.

But, a man was eventually caught in connection with the horrifying crime – that saw Ms Huskins kidnapped, drugged and sexually assaulted – after attempting another robbery and leaving his phone behind.

It allowed police to make the connection that a man named Matthew Muller had kidnapped Ms Huskins, arresting him three months later before he pleaded guilty to the crimes in 2016.

When she turned up two days later, cops claimed it was a hoax. Picture: Netflix

According to court documents, Mr Muller put blackened swim goggles over the eyes of Ms Huskins and Mr Quinn and headphones over their ears to play a recorded warning that Ms Huskins’ face would be cut or she would be hurt with an electric shock if they did not comply.

It is believed Mr Muller also wanted his victims to believe he had accomplices and made a computer recording of people whispering.

Associated Press reported at the time that Mr Muller held Ms Huskins hostage in South Lake Tahoe in California, and sent an email to a newspaper reporter with a recording of Ms Huskins’ voice to prove she was alive.

Prosecutors said another email had pictures of items used in the kidnapping, including a black spray-painted water pistol with a flashlight and laser pen attached.

He was eventually sentenced to 40 years in prison after he pleaded guilty to the kidnapping, but Ms Huskins and Mr Quinn’s life has never been the same since.

Aaron Quinn, pictured, is now married to Denise. Picture: Netflix

In court, a tearful Ms Huskins told her kidnapper: “You treated me like an object, a toy, an animal.

“I still have nightmares every night. Sleep is not rest for me. It is a trigger.”

Ms Huskins has since sued the Vallejo police department, earning a $3.2 million settlement. It would be six years until the police department would issue an apology for their actions.

The couple have stayed strong and even tied the knot in 2018, before welcoming a daughter, Olivia, five years to the day that the couple went through the horrifying ordeal.

“You can go through any kind of trauma to where it leaves you devastated and in a place where you just think, ‘This is impossible to move forward from. What do I do next?’,” Ms Huskins told ABC 7 News.

“I think ours is an example of that. There is hope. It might take time and it might be a lot of hard work, but there is hope.”