Westmoreland County’s longtime chief public defender, Wayne McGrew, resigned late last week.

“His last day officially was last Friday,” said Commissioner Ted Kopas. “I believe his resignation is in the best interest of the office.”

It was not clear what prompted the resignation. McGrew did not return a phone call Monday seeking comment.

McGrew, 57, of Sewickley Township, since April 2012 served as head of the office of lawyers who represent indigent criminal defendants. A former special agent with the FBI, McGrew previously worked as an assistant public defender during the early 2000s and was appointed to head the office months after the 2011 election that saw Republicans take power at the courthouse for the first time in a half-century.

McGrew was just the second person to hold the position of chief public defender. He replaced Dante Bertani, a former Westmoreland County Democratic Committee chairman who was fired after more than four decades. Bertani had served as the county’s first chief public defender since the office was created in 1969.

Bertani claimed his firing was politically motivated. He filed a federal wrongful termination lawsuit against the county that was settled in 2015 for $250,000.

McGrew, who had connections to the county’s new Republican leadership in 2012, was the lone candidate considered for Bertani’s replacement and had been in the role for more than 13 years.

The Public Defender’s Office operates with a nearly $2.2 million budget. It includes 14 attorneys and nine support staffers who represent criminal defendants in more than 3,500 cases each year. McGrew earned an annual salary of $121,369.

Commissioner Doug Chew, in a text message with TribLive, confirmed McGrew’s departure but did not address the reason.

“I am thankful for his years of service toward indigent defense, especially capital cases. I enjoyed working with him, and I wish him all the best going forward in whatever he’s planning next,” Chew said.

Commissioner Sean Kertes could not be reached for comment.

Former assistant public defender John Sweeney was appointed to run the office on an interim basis, Kopas said. Until he retired last year, Sweeney worked in the office under both Bertani and McGrew.

“John Sweeney knows how the office should be run. He has all the qualifications at hand to run the office until we find a long-term solution,” Kopas said. “He has the opportunity to take the temperature of the office and inform us of what the next public defender will bring to the role.”

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