SAUK VILLAGE | The village board accepted the resignation of Sauk Village Police Chief Tom Lacheta at Tuesday's board meeting.

Lacheta, who suffered a heart attack last week and is now at home convalescing, was not present at the meeting.

Village attorney Jimmy Vasselli read the recommendation to the board that they accept the resignation of Lacheta. Because the police chief had enough years of service to qualify for a pension, the resignation will be considered a retirement.

Deputy Chief Rebecca Sailsbery was present at the meeting, and was sworn in as the interim police chief.

Afterwards, Sailsbery said she was open to the possibility of becoming police chief.

"I just found out about this a short while ago, and haven't really had time to digest everything that transpired today," she said. "Right now, I want to focus on helping our department serve and protect the residents of our village."

Sailsbery has been deputy chief since May 2007. She has been a member of the police force for 17 years.

Rumors about department heads losing their jobs have been swirling around Sauk Village since the election of Village President Lewis Towers last spring.

On May 12, the day he was sworn in, Towers put all department heads on notice he was giving them a 90-day evaluation period. That period ended Aug. 12, and evaluations were given to Towers at that time.

Former Fire Chief Christopher Sewell tendered his resignation in September.

At Tuesday's meeting, long-time Deputy Fire Chief Alan Stoffregen was appointed the new fire chief.

Stoffregen, who has 40 years of service to Sauk Village, had been the interim chief since Sewell's resignation.

"I'm excited to have the job and proud to carry on a long tradition of service in Sauk Village," Stoffregen said.

It was unclear if any other department heads would be in danger of losing their job based on the evaluations.