POLK COUNTY, FL. — Detectives with the Polk County Sheriff’s Office arrested a former Haines City Police Department officer on Tuesday, June 2, 2026, following an investigation into identity theft involving a deceased individual and more than $10,000 in unauthorized credit card charges.
According to the Sheriff’s Office, 24-year-old Jeffrey Ziegler is accused of using the personal information and credit cards of a deceased man beginning one day after the victim died on February 28, 2024.
Investigators said that between February 29, 2024, and March 12, 2024, unauthorized charges totaling $10,362.02 were made on the victim’s credit cards.
The fraudulent activity was not discovered until December 31, 2025, when family members sorting through the deceased man’s mail found past-due notices related to the charges. The case was reported to the Polk County Sheriff’s Office on January 2, 2026, prompting an investigation.
Detectives determined that the victim had lived with his daughter and her boyfriend at the time of his death. The boyfriend was identified as Jeffrey Ziegler. Investigators obtained text messages provided by the victim’s daughter that allegedly placed Ziegler at locations where fraudulent transactions occurred during the timeframe of the offenses.
The Sheriff’s Office said Ziegler was employed as a detention deputy with the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office at the time the crimes were allegedly committed. At the time of his arrest, he was employed as an officer with the Haines City Police Department.
Ziegler was booked into the Polk County Jail and charged with:
- Criminal Use of Personal Identification of a Deceased Person (F2)
- Grand Theft (F3)
- Fraudulent Use of a Credit Card (F3)
- Unlawful Use of a Two-Way Communication Device (F3)
- Unlawful Possession of Personal Identification Information (M1)
According to the Haines City Police Department, Ziegler submitted a letter of resignation effective immediately following his arrest.
SOURCE: POLK COUNTY SHERRIF’S OFFICE
