Cops are probing whether Florida GOP chair Christian Ziegler committed video voyeurism as part of their rape investigation into the right-wing activist.
The revelation arrives in a new search warrant affidavit, filed by a Sarasota detective on Dec. 8, that seeks files from Ziegler’s Instagram account. It notes that police are “investigating the crime of Video Voyeurism committed by” Ziegler.
The 40-year-old chairman and his wife Bridget Ziegler—a co-founder of Moms for Liberty—have been under fire since a Florida journalism watchdog reported that cops were investigating him for raping a woman who was the couple’s ménage à trois partner.
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Christian Ziegler hasn’t been charged and denies the woman’s accusations, claiming their Oct. 2 encounter was consensual.
A previous search warrant affidavit alleged that Bridget Ziegler admitted to detectives that she knew the victim through her husband and “confirmed having a sexual encounter” with her and Christian a year ago and “that it only happened one time.”
But Christian Ziegler’s defense while speaking to cops may come back to bite him.
The new affidavit—first reported by The Florida Trident—says that Ziegler told investigators that he recorded video of his activity with the victim. In the presence of his lawyer, Derek Byrd, Ziegler also “showed detectives the 2.5-minute-long video of the sexual encounter.”
“He stated that the sexual encounter was consensual,” the document adds. “Byrd made mention of a message (on Instagram vanish mode) between the victim and Ziegler where the victim asked him if he showed his wife the video.”
When detectives asked the victim and Bridget Ziegler about the video, both women said they hadn’t seen the footage and knew nothing about it. “The victim did not give Ziegler consent to take this video of them having sex,” the affidavit says.
The detective’s affidavit says that she believes “valuable evidence will be located within the suspect’s Instagram account which will provide additional information about his criminal activity.”
Video voyeurism, a third-degree felony, could bring a punishment of up to five years behind bars. According to the Florida statute, someone violates the law if they secretly record another person for their “own amusement, entertainment, sexual arousal, gratification, or profit, or for the purpose of degrading or abusing another person” in a circumstance where the victim “has a reasonable expectation of privacy.”
The victim told police that she initially made plans for a sexual encounter with Christian Ziegler and his wife on Oct. 2, when she was off work. When she learned Bridget couldn’t make it, she canceled on Christian, texting him, “Sorry I was mostly in for her.”
According to police affidavits, Christian came to the woman’s apartment anyway and raped her without a condom. She said she wasn't able to consent because she had been drinking all day, the document continues.
The victim was treated and examined at a local hospital, where doctors conducted a sexual assault kit.
Police searched the victim’s cellphone and uncovered several messages from Ziegler beginning at 7:29 a.m. on the day he allegedly assaulted her.
“In the messages,” a previous affidavit states, “Christian told the victim to go to Instagram. The victim said Christian liked to use Instagram because he conceals the messages using vanish mode.”
Ziegler tried to contact the victim via Instagram again on Oct. 27. After she told him she wasn’t okay with what happened earlier that month, he replied, “Oh. That’s not good. You are my friend. Known ya for like twenty years now. Lol.”
“Yeah I know but that was not cool and you didn’t bring her and then did that to me,” the woman wrote, referring to Bridget.
“She was in,” Ziegler answered. “Then couldn’t because no response. She said in next time. But I understand.”
The sex scandal involving the Zieglers has destroyed the Republican power couple’s reputation as champions of family values and anti-LGBTQ crusaders.
Soon after the news broke in late November, Bridget Ziegler lost her six-figure job with the Leadership Institute training conservative school board candidates.
The mother-of-three and “parental rights” activist is also fighting to stay on the Sarasota County School Board, which unanimously passed a resolution demanding that she step down. (The panel, however, declined to ask Gov. Ron DeSantis to remove her from the board.)
During an hours-long public comment period at last month’s school board meeting, parents and activists lashed into Bridget Ziegler for engaging in bisexual activity while opposing school district policies protecting LGBTQ families.
“You’ve been ardently opposed to LGBTQ+ rights when it turns out you’re the B in that LGBTQ+,” one Sarasota mom quipped.
Meanwhile, the Florida GOP stripped Christian Ziegler of his $120,000 salary and plans to oust him from his high-profile role at a Jan. 8 meeting.
Members of the party’s executive board previously told The Daily Beast that the Zieglers’ hypocrisy was enough to give him the boot.
“The problem with being party chair is that you’re supposed to help get other people elected,” one party member said. “But if you become the story, it kind of puts a black eye on a lot of the socially conservative messaging.
“It’s a career-ender politically, in my opinion. He’s always going to be the threesome guy.”
