, according to the affidavit, Sguros allegedly represented himself to a Medical Examiner's Office investigator more than a week later as a friend of the man and said West had no living relatives. Sguros was listed as the informant on West's death certificate, and several months after the initial death investigation, was legally authorized to release West's remains to a cremation service business.

Broward County tax records showed that Sguros personally paid more than $20,000 in property taxes between 2022 and 2024 while the property remained in West's name, in addition to paying about $2,500 in 2024 toward a water utility account that was still in West's name, the affidavit said.

Investigators found  a more significant use of West's identity  after reviewing city building permit records, according to the affidavit. On Aug. 29, 2024, a notarized building permit application for the address that identified the owner as West detailed an $8,000 project to replace doors and included West's  purported  signature. The phone number provided for the owner belonged to Sguros.

 The document therefore purported to reflect Dennis West appearing, signing the owner's portion of a building-permit application, and presenting his Florida driver's license to a notary more than two years after his death,  the probable cause affidavit said.

In early 2025, Sguros and his wife filed an adverse possession claim for West's property, which stated they took possession of the property Aug. 1, 2022, and described their use of the property as  accommodation,  the affidavit said.

It was that documentation that put the property on the radar of Equinox Realty Holdings, LLC, which then began researching it as a potential investment. The company found that West did, in fact, have several legal heirs, according to the affidavit.

The real estate company owner told investigators that Equinox bought the property interests from West's heirs and took lawful possession of the property in September or October 2025. The company owner told investigators he did not learn that Sguros is a police officer until civil proceedings related to the property began earlier this year. Prior to learning that, Sguros  represented himself only as a therapist or counselor who had been associated with West,  according to the affidavit.

Equinox Realty's attorney filed a complaint to Lauderhill Police's Internal Affairs Division in May, alleging Sguros used information he received in his official duties to take control of the property and informed the department Sguros was pursuing civil remedies related the property, the affidavit said.

The investigation also found that Sguros allegedly used his access to restricted police databases to search for information about West's driver's license information and other personal information multiple times between the original wellness check through January 2023, according to the affidavit. Those searches generated West's date of birth, Social Security number, vehicle and insurance information and emergency contact information.

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