A former Polk County Sheriff’s Office (PCSO) deputy, just shy of his one-year anniversary with the agency, has been arrested for forging a victim’s signature on an official report. Jake Germak, 21, was taken into custody on March 20, 2025, following an internal investigation.
Germak faces multiple felony charges, including Forgery (F3), Uttering a False Instrument (F3), Use ID of another person without Consent (F3), and Public Servant Altering Official Document (F3). He resigned from his position at the time of his arrest; otherwise, he would have been terminated by the PCSO.
“Public servants must be held to a higher standard, and dishonesty will not be tolerated. Germak’s conduct was unethical and criminal, and we are making sure he will be held responsible,” said Sheriff Grady Judd.
The investigation began after Germak failed to obtain the required signature from a victim during a theft report on March 17th. Later that night, Germak texted the victim, initially requesting she complete a form for the report. In a subsequent text, he told her he had “got it handled.”
The following day, during a follow-up investigation, detectives spoke with the victim, who revealed the text messages and stated that Germak had falsely claimed she had signed the documents.
Detectives discovered that the signature on the document submitted by Germak did not match the victim’s signature on other official documents. When confronted, Germak admitted to forging the signature.
Germak was hired by the Polk County Sheriff’s Office on April 29, 2024.
Maybe it’s just me but I’d consider this a rookie mistake. This is a 21 year old kid. Dumb, but to lose your job over it? Especially with the difficulty in hiring these days.