A Florida law enforcement officer was arrested Tuesday after detectives linked him to a string of credit card charges stolen from a dead man.
Jeffrey Ziegler, 24, faces multiple felony charges following an identity theft investigation by the Polk County Sheriff’s Office. According to detectives, the fraudulent spending began on February 29, 2024—just one day after the victim passed away. Over a two-week period ending March 12, 2024, Ziegler allegedly racked up $10,362.02 in unauthorized charges on the deceased man’s credit cards.
The theft went completely unnoticed for nearly two years. On December 31, 2025, family members sorting through the victim’s mail discovered a stack of past-due notices for the hidden accounts. The family reported the fraud to the Polk County Sheriff’s Office on January 2, 2026, which sparked the criminal investigation.
Investigators quickly turned their attention to the victim’s inner circle. At the time of the death, the victim had been living with his daughter and her boyfriend, who was identified as Ziegler. The breakthrough in the case came when the daughter provided detectives with old text messages from Ziegler. The texts, which detailed his whereabouts at specific times and locations, matched the exact timestamps and merchants on the fraudulent credit card statements.
At the time the alleged crimes were committed, Ziegler was working as a detention deputy for the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office. By the time of his arrest on June 2, 2026, he had changed agencies and was employed as a police officer with the Haines City Police Department.
Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd expressed disgust over the timeline and nature of the theft. “Knowingly stealing from someone who has died is just terrible,” Sheriff Judd said. “I’m not sure what he was thinking, but we are holding him accountable for his criminal behavior. This permanently ends his career in public safety, that’s for sure.”
Following his arrest, Ziegler was booked into the Sheriff’s Processing Center. He is charged with criminal use of personal identification of a deceased person, grand theft, fraudulent use of a credit card, unlawful use of a two-way communication device, and unlawful possession of personal identification information.
Officials with the Haines City Police Department confirmed that Ziegler submitted a letter of resignation effective immediately upon his arrest.
Joe Halman, Jr., the Public Safety Director for Haines City, released a statement addressing the arrest of his former officer. “We are deeply saddened and disappointed by the alleged off duty behavior of former officer Jeff Ziegler,” Halman said. “We expect our officers to uphold the law and maintain integrity on and off duty. Based upon the information we have reviewed, he exercised exceedingly poor judgment. His actions do not reflect the values of this department. We remain committed to accountability and maintaining the public’s trust. Had he not resigned, he would have been terminated.”
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