California prosecutors have lodged fresh charges against a convicted kidnapper and rapist regarding a 2015 abduction and ransom case involving three victims in the Bay Area. The authorities disclosed that law enforcement had no prior knowledge of the incident until the perpetrator confessed.
Matthew Muller, aged 47, is currently serving a 40-year prison term for kidnapping and sexually assaulting a woman from Vallejo in 2015. Initially, her abduction was dismissed as a hoax, mockingly referred to as the “Gone Girl” kidnapping in reference to a popular book and film adaptation.
In the newly unveiled case, which had not been reported to authorities at the time of occurrence, Muller is accused of abducting two men and a woman in San Ramon and keeping them captive until one of the victims paid a ransom amounting to “tens of thousands of dollars” for the release of all three.
“The trauma of crime can have lasting effects that some people endure for their entire lives – whether the crime is reported or not,” Becton said. “Muller committed serious offenses throughout Northern California, and my office will be resolute in seeking justice on behalf of the victims in Contra Costa County.”
In the Vallejo case, Muller broke into a house and drugged a woman and her boyfriend. He tied up the female victim, brought her to a cabin in South Lake Tahoe, and sexually assaulted her. He held her for two days before driving her to Southern California and letting her go.
Fox News’ Stepheny Price contributed to this report.
