Michael J. Giugliano, 55, former Melville resident and police officer, dies

Former police officer Michael J. Giugliano was a decorated law enforcement official and business owner who was focused on his career and family.

Giugliano, who grew up in Melville but lived in Douglasville, Georgia, died June 11 of leukemia. He was 55.

"He was a generous, hardworking, loving father, grandfather and husband," said his brother-in-law, Jim Milazzo of Melville, the husband of Giugliano's sister, Donna Milazzo. "He loved to spend time with his grandchildren."

Giugliano was born on July 24, 1958, in Huntington Hospital and raised in Melville. He graduated from Half Hollow Hills High School in 1976. He also attended Wilson Tech, a career and technical education program of Western Suffolk BOCES, where he studied welding, Milazzo said.

After graduating, Giugliano moved to Georgia in 1979 and took a job with UPS, where he worked as a maintenance mechanic for about 10 years.

Giugliano later joined the Atlanta Police Department, where he held many ranks, including sergeant, lieutenant and captain, over a 25-year career. He was a member of the police department's Red Dog Unit, Security Organized Crime Unit and Burglary Task Force Unit. He retired from the police force in April.

"He was a workaholic," said Milazzo, a Newsday transportation driver. "Being a police officer was his life, his career."

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Aside from his civil service job, Giugliano also was the owner for 20 years of G-Man Weaponry Inc., a gun dealership, in Douglasville.

"He was a stickler for detail," Milazzo said.

A memorial service will be held Wednesday from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at M.A. Connell Funeral Home, on 934 New York Ave., Huntington Station. Burial will follow at St. Patrick's Cemetery, 45 Huntington Rd., Huntington.

He also is survived by his wife, Pam; children, Nichole, Ryan and Lyndsae; parents, Ralph and Carolyn Giugliano of Melville; and two grandchildren.

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Donations can be made in Giugliano's memory to Humble Heroes, P.O. Box 2055, Cumming, GA 30028.