Michael Douglas Brambles, a 77-year-old former Los Angeles vice detective, was arrested this week after being charged with kidnapping to commit robbery while personally using a firearm. This follows a cold case review by the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office. Brambles had previously been sentenced to 102 years in prison for multiple rapes and was paroled in 2020 under California law allowing elderly inmates to apply for parole.
The new charges stem from an alleged incident at Arabella’s Boutique in Thousand Oaks, California, where Brambles is accused of pointing a handgun at a woman, forcing her into a backroom, and tying her hands before sexually assaulting her. He is also accused of stealing from the business. However, the sexual assault allegations cannot be prosecuted due to the statute of limitations.
Brambles was identified as a suspect shortly after the incident but was already facing prosecution for other crimes at that time. He was convicted on 26 counts, including 18 armed robberies and multiple sexual assaults. Following his parole, investigators revisiting the cold case discovered Brambles was no longer incarcerated.
Brambles is currently being held in Ventura County on a $2 million bail and faces a maximum sentence of 12 years to life if convicted. District Attorney Erik Nasarenko praised the courage of the victim, referred to as SW, in coming forward and expressed commitment to holding Brambles accountable for the allegations from 32 years ago.