Brian Sguros: Lauderhill Police Officer Is Accused of Taking Dead Man’s Identity, House

Brian Sguros is a Lauderhill, Florida, police officer who is accused in a bizarre scheme involving a dead man’s house and identity.

Broward County sheriff’s officials say he attempted to take possession of a dead man’s home after responding to a welfare check and finding the 71-year-old homeowner deceased at the scene.

The arrest affidavit accuses Sguros of perpetrating a complex scheme over a four-year time frame. They say he used the man’s identity as part of a con to establish a right to possession of the property. You can read the 25-page affidavit here.

When a local realty randomly stumbled on the property and bought it from the rightful heirs, the plot unraveled, according to a Broward County sheriff’s affidavit obtained by HeavyGlobal. The home was owned by Dennis Ionis West, 71, whose identity Sguros is accused of misappropriating. According to The New York Post, Sguros has been a police officer since 2021 and is now on unpaid leave.

According to Broward County court records, Sguros is now charged with five criminal counts, including official misconduct, criminal use of personal ID info, use of two-way device to facilitate a felony, and offense against computer user. He was arrested on October 20, 2026 in Lauderhill, FL. The booking report gives his address as Fort Lauderdale.

Brian Louis Sguros Originally Went to the Home for a Welfare Check, the Affidavit Says

According to an arrest affidavit, on July 11, 2022, a Lauderhill police officer and his backup officer Brian Louis Sguros responded to a dispatched call for service for a welfare check. The caller said that she had not seen the homeowner (the name is blacked out, but he’s been identified in news reports as West) for two weeks. Officers saw two cars in the driveway, but no signs of forced entry. They entered the home through an unlocked door and found the person lying face up deceased.

There were no suspicious circumstances and no next of kin information was listed in department databases. The medical examiner responded, and the house was secured. An autopsy determined the person died of natural causes. Sguros spoke with a neighbor and conducted an exterior assessment. There was nothing to indicate that Sguros knew the person or had a prior relationship with him, the affidavit says.

The affidavit further alleges:

Later Sguros is accused of representing himself as the West’s friend and became involved in “post death affairs.” On July 20, 2022, he described himself as a friend. He said the deceased man had no living family and stated he was willing to step forward and handle funeral arrangements if family could not be located, the affidavit says.

The investigation later established that the deceased did have surviving family members and lawful heirs.

After the initial death investigation, Sguros was identified as a friend and legally authorized person in a form for release and removal, the affidavit says, adding that he allegedly authorized the medical examiner to release the remains to the Neptune Society.

Brian Sguros Is Accused of Admitting That He Repaired & Secured the Home

Brian Louis Sguros later admitted under oath that his involvement with the property itself began shortly after the death. He took possession of the property on Aug. 1, 2022, says the affidavit. He said that he cleaned, secured, repaired, stabilized and rehabilitated the property from August 2022 through February 2025, it adds.

Sguros claimed he spent $214,000 and increased the property’s value to about $500,000, the affidavit alleges. He said his possession and work “were open and visible and claimed that he acted because the property was hazardous and he wanted to prevent squatters and criminal activity.”

He began assuming expenses associated with the property and personally paid the property taxes and utilities. A building permit application and water utility account remained in the deceased man’s name. In 2024, a Florida driver’s license number was issued to the man who died. The phone number on the permit traced to Sguros. That’s all according to the affidavit.

He eventually asserted an equitable financial interest in the home, the affidavit says. Trinidad Samano-Ramirez was identified as his spouse/significant other and was also listed as the second claimant on the later adverse possession filing, adds the affidavit.

Brian Sguros and His Significant Other Tried to Gain the Property Through ‘Adverse Possession’

On Feb 5, 2025, Sguros and Samano-Ramirez filed a return of real property in an attempt to establish adverse possession, alleges the affidavit. Sguros allegedly said he took possession of the property on August 1, 2022.

The affidavit says it all unraveled when Equinox Realty acquired deeds from the heirs due to the sale of the property. The realty company started researching the property as a potential investment opportunity and located the heirs to negotiate acquisitions of their respective interests. The company then pursued probate proceedings.

When Equinox Realty attempted to obtain possession, they discovered that Sguros remained in possession of the home, according to the affidavit. The realty’s attorney made a complaint to the Lauderhill police and Sguros surrendered the keys but demanded reimbursement for repairs and improvements.

The attorney filed a complaint with police. “The complaint alleged that Brian Louis Sguros used information obtained while performing his official police duties, assumed possession or control of property associated with an official death investigation, asserted a personal financial interest in the property, and subsequently pursued civil remedies relating to that asserted interest.”

In an affidavit, Sguros admitted he took possession of the property after discovering the man deceased.

Adverse possession filings generally require seven years of continuous possession and payment of taxes, the affidavit says, adding that Sguros represented himself as a therapist or counselor.

Sguros filed a suit for about $200,000 for work he claimed to have performed. Sguros was accused of misrepresenting himself as the dead man in connection with a permit to replace windows.

A Neighbor Saw a Man in a Police Uniform Outside the Residence

A neighbor said the deceased man lived alone at the home after his wife passed away. When he died, the residence was vacant or abandoned, the affidavit adds.

Around December, she saw a male at the property going in and out relating to construction related activity. She observed renovations. She assumed he had purchased the property and noticed him wearing his police uniform outside.

She thought having a police officer in the neighborhood “was a positive thing.” The construction activity went on for a year.

She had never seen Sguros at the home prior to the death and wasn’t aware of anyone living in the residence. The affidavit also alleges that the officer used a computer to access records of the deceased.