QUEENS, N.Y. (PIX11) \u2013 An NYPD officer was caught on camera allegedly planting evidence during a sting operation.<\/p>\n
He now faces charges of perjury and misconduct, Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
More Crime News <\/a><\/p>\n Miguel Vanbrakle, 48, is facing charges of perjury, tampering with physical evidence, lying under oath, and falsifying documents related to a weapons case, along with additional charges, according to court documents.<\/p>\n \u201cAs alleged, this officer was sworn to uphold the law and instead planted evidence in a gun possession case, perjured himself, and lied on official documents,\u201d DA Katz said. \u201cAs a result of the defendant\u2019s alleged actions, an individual had felony gun charges pending against him for more than a year.\u201d<\/p>\n In 2023, Vanbrakle was a member of an NYPD team that conducted a court-authorized search of a Cambria Heights residence to locate firearms and other evidence.<\/p>\n According to documents, Vanbrakle allegedly planted evidence to wrongly link the discovery of a gun to a person listed on the search warrant.<\/p>\n Vanbrakle then testified before a grand jury and, in official documents, stated that he recovered a loaded revolver and a benefit card from a safe belonging to the warrant target during the search. However, the homeowner, the target\u2019s fianc\u00e9e, claimed the gun was hers, not her fianc\u00e9\u2019s, according to court documents.<\/p>\n Later, a review of body-worn camera footage showed that Vanbrakle allegedly emptied a shoebox in the living room, took a benefit card from it, and placed it in the safe where the gun was found. The person listed on the search warrant was then wrongfully indicted on felony weapon possession and other charges, according to court documents.<\/p>\n Make PIX11 your preferred news source on Google: Here\u2019s how <\/a><\/p>\n The charges were later dismissed, DA Katz said.<\/p>\n Vanbrakle is scheduled to return to court on Feb 23.<\/p>\n If convicted of the numerous crimes, the defendant faces up to seven years in prison.<\/p>\n Matthew Euzarraga is a multimedia journalist from El Paso, Texas. He has covered local news and LGBTQIA topics in the New York City Metro area since 2021. He joined the PIX11 Digital team in 2023. You can see more of his work here<\/a>. <\/p>\n Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.<\/p>\n