Officer who found man dead in Florida home reportedly moved in, renovated and assumed his identity for years

Dennis West was found dead in his Florida home during a welfare check in July 2022. Weeks later, one of the officers who discovered his body moved into the house and spent years posing as him, investigators say.

Brian Louis Sguros, 35, an officer with the Lauderhill Police Department, was arrested Tuesday and faces several criminal charges: official misconduct, criminal use of identity of a deceased person, criminal use of personally identifiable information, trespassing against a computer user and unlawful use of a two-way communications device.

It is unclear whether Sguros has obtained an attorney.

The Broward County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release that Sguros responded to a welfare check at West’s home on July 11, 2022. West, 71, was found dead inside and his death was determined to be from natural causes, the news release said.

In documents Sguros allegedly filed, he admitted to taking possession of the home in August 2022, weeks after West’s death, the release states.

Sguros showed up at the county medical examiner’s office as a friend of West, although there was no indication that Sguros knew West, according to the sheriff’s office. He also told the office that West had no living family, which is untrue, authorities said.

Authorities said Sguros paid taxes and utilities on the home on West’s behalf. He is also accused of using West’s identification to “get the City of Lauderhill to issue a permit to facilitate repairs,” the release said. He allegedly used law enforcement databases to obtain information about West and forged West’s signature on a license.

Sguros appeared in court Wednesday and was ordered held on $25,000 bail, NBC South Florida reported. After his arrest, he was placed on unpaid administrative leave from the Lauderhill Police Department.