Police officer accused of creating scheme to take control of deceased man's home after welfare check

A Florida police officer is facing felony charges after officials said a welfare check led to a scheme in which the officer tried to take control of an individual's home following his death.



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The Broward Sheriff's Office said Brian Louis Sguros, 35, a Lauderhill police officer, responded as backup officer for a welfare check at a home in the area on July 11, 2022.

Officials said 71-year-old Dennis West was found dead inside the home. He died of natural causes.



Following West's death, detective said Sguros became involved in the individual's post-death affairs, saying he represented himself to the Broward County Medical Examiner's Office as West's friend.



Sguros stated to the medical examiner's office that West had no living family.



The department said there is no indication they both knew each other, and that West still has living family members.



The investigation revealed that Sguros paid the taxes and utilities at the home in West's name and used West's identification to make it appear that he was still alive to get the city of Lauderhill to issue a permit to facilitate repairs.



In addition, the department said the officer forged West's signature on the permit.



According to investigators, Sguros also filed paperwork with Broward County Property Appraiser in Feb. 2025, stating his possession of the property dated back to Aug. 2022, just weeks after West's death.



Authorities took Sguros into custody on Oct. 20, 2026.



He faces several charges, including official misconduct, criminal use of deceased personal identification, criminal use of personal identification information, offense against a computer user and unlawful use of a two-way communication device.



An investigation into the incident remains ongoing.
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