California couple seek damages over police dismissal of woman's kidnapping as a hoax

Denise Huskins, second from left, and her boyfriend, Aaron Quinn, turn to each other at the end of a news conference on Monday, July 13, 2015, in Vallejo, Calif. At left is Huskins' attorney, Douglas Rappaport and second from right is Quinn's attorney, Daniel Russo. The lawyers for the couple in the kidnap-for-ransom case that police called a hoax are blasting investigators and asking that authorities set the record straight. (Mike Jory/Vallejo Times-Herald via AP) (The Associated Press)

SAN FRANCISCO – A California woman and her boyfriend sought unspecified monetary damages Thursday from a city in a claim that says police initially dismissed the kidnapping of the woman as a hoax worthy of the Hollywood movie "Gone Girl."

Police in Vallejo later apologized, but the claim filed by Denise Huskins and Aaron Quinn said it came too late and contained too many caveats, including the contention that officers took appropriate investigative steps with the information available.

Vallejo police spokesman Lt. Kenny Park didn't immediately return a call Thursday seeking comment on the claim that could lead to a lawsuit if it's rejected by the city.

Vallejo Police Chief Andrew Bidou apologized to Huskins and Quinn in separate letters sent July 20. He said subsequent events and new evidence made it clear there was a kidnapping.

Quinn reported to police on March 23 that kidnappers broke into the couple's home while they slept, drugged them, abducted Huskins and demanded money.

Huskins turned up safe two days later in her hometown of Huntington Beach hours before the ransom was due. She told police a harrowing tale of fear, assault and threats to her family.

Police, however, issued a press release calling the kidnapping report an "orchestrated event."

The claim filed by the couple says a police detective told Huskins' mother that Huskins may have made up the story to gain attention. The contention resembles a plotline of the 2014 film "Gone Girl."

In July, federal investigators named disbarred attorney Matthew Muller as a suspect in the abduction.

Muller was arrested after an attempted home invasion robbery in nearby Dublin, California. The FBI said Muller dropped his cellphone at the scene of the incident that was similar to the report filed by Huskins and Quinn.

Muller has pleaded not guilty to attempted robbery in connection with the Dublin incident. He has not entered a plea to the kidnapping charge filed in federal court in the Vallejo case.

His attorney Thomas Johnson didn't return a phone call.