A former deputy sheriff of Polk County found himself in trouble Tuesday when investigators discovered he was being paid for hours he never worked.
On May 20, 2026, Ezekiel Williams, 25, was arrested by the Polk County Sheriff’s Office for his previous employment. According to detectives, Williams falsified many time cards and pocketed $4,318.39 in undeserved government money.
Williams is now facing four third-degree felony counts, including grand theft, official misconduct, scheming to deceive, and improper use of two-way communication equipment.
The trouble started on March 24, 2026. Because of a medical condition, Williams was granted a light-duty assignment at Animal Control. His schedule was scheduled from Tuesday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. On Mondays, he was permitted to utilize paid time off and medical leave to attend doctor visits.
By April, Williams’ situation had started to deteriorate. Williams began calling out of work frequently and texting his supervisor at Animal Control. Eventually, the supervisor noted Williams’ frequent absences and raised the issue with the agency’s law enforcement authority.
A cursory review of his time cards revealed significant discrepancies between the hours he logged and the time he actually spent on the job. That resulted in a thorough inquiry and audit of his pay periods. Finally, detectives discovered that Williams claimed 131.5 hours of work that he never completed across three distinct pay periods.
“This deputy was injured off-duty, and we gave him every opportunity to handle his medical issues and continue to work on light-duty status,” Sheriff Grady Judd stated. “He thanked us by stealing our money. Now he is experiencing jail from the inside. If he had not resigned, his position would have been terminated.”
Williams joined the service as a deputy sheriff on May 21, 2024. Following his arrest, he was put into jail and is presently being held on a $20,000 bond, with $5,000 for each of his four offenses.
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