Police officer accused of using dead man’s identity to take over South Florida home

A South Florida police officer is facing five charges, including stealing a deceased man’s identity and acquiring his home without legal authority, officials said.

According to Broward County Sheriff’s Office online booking records, Brian Louis Sguros, 35, was arrested on Tuesday. He was charged with official misconduct, criminal use of a deceased person’s personal identification information, criminal use of a deceased person’s personal identification information without that person’s consent, and unlawful use of computers and a two-way communications device.

During Sguro’s initial court appearance on Wednesday, a judge set his bond at $25,000, WTVJ reported.

Sguro has been an officer with the Lauderhill Police Department since March 2021, according to the Sun Sentinel.

Department officials said that Sguros was suspended with pay on July 22 while the case was being investigated, but he was suspended without pay as of Tuesday, the newspaper reported.

According to Lauderhill police, an investigation was launched on May 27, WTVJ reported. The probe uncovered alleged conduct that began with a welfare check, according to the television station.

According to an arrest affidavit, Sguros and another Lauderhill police officer responded to a welfare check on July 11, 2022, WPLG reported.

Officers entered the home through an unlocked front door and discovered the body of Dennis Ionis West near the entrance.

An autopsy determined that West died of cardiovascular disease, and natural causes were determined to be his cause of death, according to the television station.

According to the affidavit, Sguros acknowledged in sworn court documents that he took possession of West’s property around Aug. 1, 2022, WPLG reported.

Sguros claimed he spent more than two years cleaning, securing and renovating the home, the affidavit stated.

In court filings, he said he invested at least $214,000 of his own money into the property and increased its value to approximately $500,000. He said he invested the money to protect the home from squatters and criminal activity, WPLG reported.

The sheriff’s office said that Sguros “represented himself to the Broward County Medical Examiner’s Office as West’s friend, although there is no indication he knew West, and stated that West had no living family, which was untrue,” the Sun Sentinel reported.

Investigators said that Sguros even paid taxes and utilities at the home in order to obtain a legal permit for repairs, according to an arrest affidavit. Sguros allegedly forged West’s signature on official documents, the sheriff’s office said.

Police said Sguros sent the documents via his cellphone and used department computers for personal use to look up West’s records, WTVJ reported.

According to authorities, West’s legal heirs found out about the alleged deception through probate proceedings, the Sun Sentinel reported.

“Every officer in this Department swears an oath to protect the people of Lauderhill, including those who can no longer speak for themselves,” Lauderhill police Chief Constance Stanley said in a statement.

“We hold police officers in the highest regard because they take an oath to protect the public,” Broward County Property Appraiser Marty Kiar said in a statement to WPLG. “This case is so troubling because this officer has been charged with using his position to defraud the public.”

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