Disappearance of California Woman Denise Huskins Wasn't a Hoax, Lawyers Say

Denise Huskins turned up unharmed two days after she was supposedly taken.

ByABC News
March 30, 2015, 8:09 AM

— -- Lawyers for a California woman and her boyfriend are steadfast that the woman’s disappearance wasn’t a hoax, despite police saying the kidnapping was orchestrated and never happened.

“This is no hoax,” said Doug Rappaport, the attorney for 29-year-old Denise Huskins. “This is not a laughing matter,”

Huskins turned up unharmed Wednesday, two days after she supposedly was taken for an $8,500 ransom.

Vallejo Police Lt. Kenny Park expressed disappointment in the situation.

“The fact that we wasted all these resources for essentially nothing is really upsetting,” Park said.

Daniel Russo, an attorney for Aaron Quinn, the woman’s boyfriend, told ABC News that there’s plenty of evidence that the kidnappers were real -- and still on the loose.

“These people, they’re really motivated,” Russo said.

PHOTO: Members of the media gather at a location where Denise Huskins, a woman who was reported missing, was found safe in Huntington Beach, Calif., on March 25, 2015.
Members of the media gather at a location where Denise Huskins, a woman who was reported missing, was found safe in Huntington Beach, Calif., on March 25, 2015.

The reported evidence includes manifesto-type emails sent both to the San Francisco Chronicle and Quinn’s attorney -- allegedly from the kidnappers -- as well as an audio recording believed to be Huskins.

Russo, who declined to go into specifics, said the evidence proves the couple isn’t lying. He added that there’s good reason why his client waited 10 hours before calling for help: Quinn was tied up and drugged, Russo said.

“If he is accurate about the group of people that did this to him, then they’re on the loose,” Russo said.

Police have questioned both Quinn and Huskins. At this point, law enforcement and the FBI both remain tight-lipped about the ongoing investigation.