An internal investigation found that former Howey-in-the-Hills Police Chief Michael Giddens had a sexual relationship with the wife of a felony suspect he was investigating, including an encounter while he was on duty.
The Lake County Sheriff’s Office conducted the investigation at the town’s request because Giddens was the subject of the complaint.
Investigators said Giddens began communicating with the woman after contacting her while investigating her husband in March 2025. The woman told investigators she and Giddens later had two consensual sexual encounters at a hotel…