Criminal and internal investigations are underway into allegations of theft leveled against a recently departed Hennepin County sheriff's captain who oversaw the forensic science laboratory, officials said Wednesday.

Scott County Sheriff Luke Hennen said his office is heading the criminal investigation of Steven Labatt, 58, who had been with the Hennepin County Sheriff's Office for 35 years.

Hennen declined to provide additional details about the investigation including whether the inquiry involves Labatt's official duties or actions as a private citizen.

Hennen said Hennepin County Sheriff Dawanna Witt requested that his office lead the inquiry.

Contact information for Labatt was not immediately available Wednesday. Minneapolis attorney Joe Tamburino said he's representing Labatt but declined to comment further.

The Sheriff's Office crime lab works with 35 law enforcement agencies in the county along with the State Patrol and federal law enforcement agencies.

Labatt has risen through the ranks within the Sheriff's Office, starting in the jail in 1989, then moving on to the water patrol, the crime lab unit, investigations, and the enforcement services division.

He became the forensic science lab's director in January 2021 until he was "separated from employment" on April 30, said Sheriff's Office spokeswoman Megan Larson, who added that Labatt is now the subject of an internal investigation.

She did not specify whether Labatt resigned or was fired.