[Page H1281]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        RECOGNIZING SEASIDE POLICE DEPARTMENT CHIEF NICK BORGES

  (Mr. Panetta of California was recognized to address the House for 5 
minutes.)
  Mr. PANETTA. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize Seaside Police 
Department Chief Nick Borges and many others for their dedication and 
doggedness to solve the case called the ``American Nightmare.''
  Aptly named, this case started back in 2015 in Vallejo, California, 
when Matthew Muller broke into the home of Denise and Aaron Quinn, 
drugged and bound them, and kidnapped Denise. Muller then took Denise 
to a cabin near Lake Tahoe where he sexually assaulted her and released 
her 3 days later down in southern California.
  Of course, Aaron immediately called the authorities, but the Vallejo 
Police Department was unable to solve the crime. This is after they 
interrogated Aaron for hours upon hours, brushing aside his 
explanation, trying to get him to confess to killing Denise.
  Ultimately, after Aaron wouldn't confess to something he didn't do, 
the detectives accused both Aaron and Denise of faking and lying about 
the whole thing. The detectives even went as far as putting out a 
formal statement, calling the whole thing a hoax and that, given the 
facts that had been presented thus far, this event appeared to be an 
orchestrated event, not a crime.

  Madam Speaker, get this. Around the same time period, Muller 
committed several more home invasions. He eventually got caught and 
convicted for those similar crimes. The Vallejo detectives never 
connected Muller to the kidnapping of Denise.
  It was such a sensational story about how the detectives acted and 
about how Aaron and Denise allegedly concocted a kidnapping that even 
Netflix came out with a documentary called the ``American Nightmare.'' 
Madam Speaker, it became one of the most watched docuseries on Netflix.
  Fortunately, one of the people who watched that Netflix series was 
Seaside Police Chief Nick Borges. Chief Borges didn't have anything to 
do with that case, but after watching the documentary in 2024, he 
literally reached out to Denise and Aaron. He let them know that even 
he was disgusted with the way the Vallejo detectives conducted the 
interviews and that Denise and Aaron had the backing of law 
enforcement, despite how they were treated.
  Chief Borges then decided to meet with the couple, along with Alameda 
County Detective Misty Carausu and El Dorado County DA Vern Pierson, 
all of whom felt that the investigation was mishandled. The group then 
started their own investigation and quickly found that Muller was in 
custody for similar crimes in the same areas.
  Chief Borges then simply and literally reached out to Muller who was 
in custody on his other similar crimes, and he asked Muller if he would 
want to talk about the crimes against Aaron and Denise. Madam Speaker, 
if you can imagine this, Muller responded, and he admitted what he did 
do to Denise.
  Further investigation by the group and getting the FBI involved led 
authorities to the Lake Tahoe cabin where they found further evidence 
to corroborate the crimes that Muller committed against Denise and 
Aaron. Eventually, Muller ended up pleading guilty to those crimes, as 
well as others that he had committed in the area.
  Madam Speaker, as DA Pierson said: This was a very unusual, crazy set 
of facts. It unfortunately had detectives who didn't believe Aaron and 
Denise from the start, as well as those who used some outdated 
investigation and interrogation techniques, that led them down the 
wrong path.
  Fortunately, though, police officers with common sense got involved 
to help solve this case. Moreover, Denise, Aaron, Chief Borges, and 
others are now working with law enforcement to change how 
interrogations are conducted and to ensure that what Aaron and Denise 
experienced never happens again.
  Madam Speaker, I rise today to commend Denise and Aaron for their 
fortitude, for their resilience, and for their belief in law 
enforcement. I recognize Seaside Police Chief Borges and the other law 
enforcement officers who used common sense and their humanity to not 
only solve this case with a sense of justice but to do what is right in 
our society.

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