Listen: Audio released of Moms for Liberty cofounder Bridget Ziegler’s police interview

The Sarasota Police Department today released the audio recording of its interview with Moms for Liberty cofounder and Sarasota County School Board Member Bridget Ziegler in the now-closed rape investigation of her husband, former Florida GOP chairman Christian Ziegler. 

“We are looking at an allegation of sexual assault by your husband,” Det. Maria Llovio informed Bridget Ziegler during the Nov. 1 interview in her office at the Leadership Institute, where she worked to train conservatives to run for school boards across the country.  

“Okay,” a seemingly unfazed Ziegler quickly responded. 

At one point during the interview, Ziegler laughed and said, “How public will this become? Because I live a very public life.” 

The sexual assault investigation, first reported by the Florida Trident, would make national headlines, lead to her husband’s ouster as GOP chair, prompt Bridget Ziegler’s removal from her Leadership Institute post, and trigger widespread calls for her resignation from the school board. 

As reported earlier, Bridget Ziegler admitted to detectives she previously engaged in a threesome with the alleged victim in the case and her husband, whom she said set up that encounter. The same woman alleged Christian Ziegler raped her this past Oct. 2 after he claimed both he and Bridget were available for another sexual encounter. 

Bridget Ziegler denied knowing  she had been mentioned in her husband’s subsequent attempt to have sex with the woman, but told Det. Llovio, “If there were any extramarital thing it wouldn’t blow my mind or surprise [me].”  She voiced surprise, though, at her husband’s sexual encounter with the woman, saying if her husband were to have sex with another woman she “felt like I would know about it.” 

Bridget Ziegler believed she and her husband were in California near the time of the incident and again said “that surprises me, like a lot.”

“Okay. Well, we have confirmed through video that he was there,” Llovio told her. 

“Oh, oh,” said Ziegler.

“We have him walking in and out of the complex where she lives and we have his vehicle there,” said the detective.  

Bridget Ziegler asked if the alleged victim was okay. 

“She’s struggling,” said Llovio. “She’s having a hard time with what happened, but she’s doing okay as she can be.” 

The interview ended with detectives thanking Bridget Ziegler for her time. 

“My pleasure,” she responded. 

Police closed the rape case with no charges filed. A second video voyeurism case is under review at the State Attorney’s Office. 

Listen to the entire audio recording of the interview here.