Brian Louis Sguros, 35, appeared with a private attorney. The judge ordered him to stay away from the property and have no contact with the family involved in the case. His family planned to post the bond, according to information presented in court.

The allegations stem from a July 11, 2022, welfare check at a home on Northwest 12th Street in Lauderhill. Sguros and another officer went there after a neighbor reported that homeowner Dennis Ionis West had not been seen for about two weeks. Officers found West’s badly decomposed body inside. An autopsy determined he died of cardiovascular disease, and his death was ruled natural.

According to a Broward Sheriff’s Office arrest affidavit, Sguros later took possession of the home, moved in with his partner and began renovations. Investigators say he used West’s identifying information in connection with the work, including on a building-permit application submitted in 2024, more than two years after West’s death.

The application sought an $8,000 project to replace windows and exterior doors, and listed West as the homeowner. Investigators say it included his driver’s license information and a signature attributed to him, and indicated that he had appeared before a notary. The notary told detectives she did not recognize the paperwork and that the signature was not hers, according to the affidavit. Investigators also say the phone number listed for West belonged to Sguros.

The affidavit says Sguros acknowledged in sworn court documents that he took possession of the property around Aug. 1, 2022. He claimed to have spent at least $214,000 cleaning, securing and renovating the home, which he estimated was worth about $500,000 after the work. He also paid property taxes and utilities while the home remained registered under West’s estate, according to the account presented in the case.

Authorities further allege that Sguros accessed law enforcement databases seven times between July 2022 and January 2023 to obtain information about West. Investigators identified five alleged offenses: official misconduct, criminal use of a deceased person’s identifying information, criminal use of personal identifying information, an offense against a computer user and unlawful use of a two-way communications device.

The property dispute surfaced after Equinox Realty Holdings acquired ownership interests from West’s surviving heirs. The company’s representatives found Sguros living at the home, prompting a dispute over who had rights to it. A Broward County court later recognized the heirs’ interests and the transfers to Equinox, investigators said. Sguros eventually turned over the keys and later filed a civil lawsuit seeking an equitable lien for improvements he said he made.

The ensuing dispute led to an investigation by the Broward County Property Appraiser’s Deed Fraud Task Force and sheriff’s office detectives. Property Appraiser Marty Kiar said the allegations raised particular concern because Sguros had access to the home through his police duties. Investigators say Sguros identified himself as West’s friend in communications with the medical examiner’s office and offered to help with funeral arrangements if relatives could not be found; West had surviving family members and legal heirs.

Sguros has been placed on unpaid leave from the Lauderhill Police Department. The allegations have not been proven in court.