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VENTURA, Calif. () — A sexual assault case involving a former Los Angeles police detective has been reopened in Ventura County, with the victim waiting more than three decades for justice.
She only wants to be identified by the initials SW and said that in 1994 she was “brutalized by a man I didn’t know.”
SW says that 77-year-old Michael Brambles, a former LAPD detective, sexually assaulted her in 1994 when she ran a gift shop in Thousand Oaks — that’s where the alleged rape and armed robbery happened.
“On April 19, 1994, Brambles is accused of entering Arabella Boutique…as SW was closing the business. Brambles allegedly pointed a handgun at SW, forced her into a backroom, tied her hands behind her back and sexually assaulted her,” said the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office in a statement. “Brambles then allegedly stole property from the business.”
Brambles was a star detective for the LAPD for 23 years and retired in 1994. Shortly after, in 1996, he was sentenced to 102 years in state prison on more than 2 dozen counts that included rape and robbery in L.A. County.
According to the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office, not long after retiring from the LAPD, Brambles allegedly kidnapped and raped SW but her case was dropped after L.A. County’s conviction.
However, in 2020 Brambles was released from prison.
“It was discovered that Brambles had been released from custody approximately 6 years under elder parole laws,” said Ventura County Sheriff James Fryhoff.
So SW’s case was reopened. DNA evidence connected Brambles to her case.
“The criminal complaint alleges that Brambles kidnapped SW for the purpose of committing a robbery. While personally using a firearm during the commission of that alleged offense,” said Ventura County District Attorney Erik Nasarenko.
The complaint also alleges several aggravating circumstances, including that the crime involved great violence, the victim was particularly vulnerable, the manner in which the crime was carried out indicated “planning, sophistication or professionalism, and that Brambles engaged in violent conduct indicating a serious danger to society.”
Brambles was initially considered a suspect in SW’s case. However, after his 1996 conviction, SW agreed to drop her case. Now, she is pleased that the case is finally progressing.
“I am thankful to have this opportunity to seek justice for myself and for his other victims. I am here for the other victims of sexual assault to let them know they are not alone,” she said.
Brambles was arrested at his home in Santa Maria on Wednesday. He remains in custody in Santa Barbara County Jail with his bail set at $2 million. If convicted of all counts, he faces 12 years to life in prison.
Anyone who believes they may have been a victim of Brambles in a previously unreported crime is urged to call D.A. Investigator Mike McManama at 805-477-1652.
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