VIDEO: Florida Policeman Who Found Dead Man Accused of Taking His Identity and Home

A policeman is accused of using a deceased man’s identity to take over his residence in Lauderhill, Florida, and is facing several charges in the case.

The suspect was identified as 35-year-old Brian Louis Sguros of the Lauderhill Police Department, KTUL reported Thursday.

When the department reported information about a possible crime, other agencies became involved with the investigation, including the Broward County Sheriff’s Office and the Broward County Property Appraiser’s Office Crimes Against Property Unit, the sheriff’s office said.

“The investigation revealed that the Lauderhill Police officer assisted on a welfare check of a Lauderhill resident in 2022 and, after finding the individual deceased of natural causes, created a complex scheme to take control of the individual’s home,” the sheriff’s office stated, noting Sguros was arrested Tuesday.

The deceased person was identified as 71-year-old Dennis West.

Sguro was charged with official misconduct, criminal use of deceased personal identification, criminal use of personal identification information, offense against computer user, and unlawful use of two-way communication device.

The sheriff’s office continued:

The BSO/BCPA investigation began after the Lauderhill Police Department provided information of a possible crime. The investigation revealed that on July 11, 2022, Sguros responded as a backup officer for a welfare check on a resident at 4551 N.W. 12th Street in Lauderhill. The resident, Dennis West, was deceased inside the home. Following his death, detectives say Sguros became involved in West’s post-death affairs. For instance, 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 investigation also 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 West was still alive to get the city of Lauderhill to issue a permit to facilitate repairs. The BSO detective overseeing the investigation indicated that Sguros also forged West’s signature on the permit. Through the investigation, detectives said they found instances where Sguros used his access to law enforcement databases to obtain information about West.

A neighbor told NBC Miami she did not realize what the officer allegedly did with the home.

“We actually thought he went down to the courthouse, had some type of paperwork for him to actually get the house because I was like it was that easy?” she said.

According to Local 10, West’s relatives sold the property to a company called Equinox, and when the company tried taking possession of the home with the suspect living there, they notified police:

Law enforcement said the investigation is ongoing.