A former Los Angeles vice detective, once handed a 102-year prison sentence for a series of rapes more than 30 years ago, has been taken into custody again after being paroled in 2020 under a California law, officials said this week.
Michael Douglas Brambles, 77, now faces a charge of kidnapping to commit robbery with the personal use of a firearm, tied to an alleged robbery and sexual assault, according to the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office.
Prosecutors also cited multiple aggravating factors, saying the alleged offense involved “great violence,” targeted a victim who was especially vulnerable, appeared to reflect planning, sophistication or professionalism, and showed violent behavior that suggests Brambles poses a serious danger to the community.
Michael Douglas Brambles, 77, has been charged with kidnapping to commit robbery while personally using a firearm in a case linked to an alleged robbery and sexual assault, the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office said. (Ventura County District Attorney’s Office; Lou Benoist/ AFP via Getty Images)
Authorities allege Brambles walked into Arabella’s Boutique in Thousand Oaks, California, as a woman identified as SW was closing the store, aimed a handgun at her and forced her into a back room, where he bound her hands behind her back and sexually assaulted her.
Investigators also accuse him of taking property from the business before leaving the scene.
The alleged sexual assault itself cannot be prosecuted because the statute of limitations has expired.
Brambles was identified as a suspect soon after the incident, but at the time he was already facing prosecution in connection with a series of robberies and sexual assaults.
He was convicted on 26 counts, including 18 armed robberies and multiple sexual assaults.
After being sentenced to 102 years, SW’s case was dismissed, which she agreed with, believing he would spend the rest of his life in prison.
But he was able to apply for parole in 2020 under a California law that allows elderly inmates to apply.
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Victim SW speaks at the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office press conference this week. (Ventura County District Attorney’s Office)
At his parole hearing, Brambles denied sexually assaulting any women besides the cases he had already been convicted for in Los Angeles County.
While examining SW’s cold case as part of the federal Sexual Assault Kit Initiative, Ventura County District Attorney’s Office investigators realized he had been paroled.
Brambles was arrested on Wednesday and is being held in Ventura County on $2 million bail.
“A few months ago, when investigators from the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office contacted me, I was shocked to hear not only that this man was walking free, but that he had been out of prison for six years,” SW said at a press conference this week. “The justice that I and his other victims deserved was denied when he was only required to serve a fraction of the sentence he earned. I am thankful to have this opportunity now to seek justice for myself and for his other victims.”
The Ventura County District Attorney’s office in California. (Ventura County District Attorny’s Office/Facebook)
Brambles faces a maximum sentence of 12 years to life if convicted.
“Without her courage, bravery and resolve to once again face the person who allegedly attacked her, we would not be here today,” District Attorney Erik Nasarenko said of SW at the press conference. “Despite the passage of time and the long road ahead, SW is committed to seeing Michael Brambles held responsible for these violent accusations from 32 years ago, and so are we.”
