Meet the Instructors

Sergeant Michael Varilek

Mike is a Patrol Sergeant, K-9 Handler-Instructor, and Drug Recognition Expert-Instructor for a small (5-man) Sheriff's Office in North Central South Dakota, where he also serves as the County Director of Emergency Management.

With nearly 20 years of experience and having handled three canines over a 15+ year period, Mike has made countless arrests for fugitives, drugs, weapons, and impaired driving.

Working as Deputy Sheriff and former Federal Drug Task Force Officer, Mike has seized millions of dollars in drugs and assets while working two-lane roads and highways where many say, "criminal activity doesn't exist (here)".

Due to his contributions to the State of South Dakota in the area of highway safety, Mike was recently named the 1st Annual Chief Deputy Ken Prorok South Dakota Highway Safety Officer of the Year. The award was created in honor of Moody County Chief Deputy Sheriff Ken Prorok who died in the line of duty after being intentionally struck by a suspect vehicle being pursued by law enforcement on February 2, 2024.

From 2018 to 2024, Mike instructed for another Midwest-based training company and taught state-specific criminal interdiction courses to law enforcement professionals from South Dakota, North Dakota, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Wyoming, and Nebraska. Mike has also taught at various national conferences including K-9 Cops and HITS K-9.

Mike has served as an Adjunct Instructor for the South Dakota Law Enforcement Training Academy where he has instructed basic search and seizure and legal aspects of traffic stops.

In addition to his regular duties, Mike is a team member and coordinator of the North Central South Dakota Multi-Jurisdictional Criminal Enforcement Team which consists of seven counties and two municipal agencies, and he has served as a Special Officer for the Sturgis Police Department working as a Foot Patrol Officer (2009 to 2011), Foot Patrol Team Leader (2012-2018), and K-9 Interdiction Officer (2022-Present) during the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally.

Deputy Sheriff Kent Gries

Kent attended Buena Vista University in Storm Lake, IA and graduated in 2006 with a Bachelor of Arts Degree, attaining the Dean’s List. In December of 2006, Gries graduated from the Regional Law Enforcement Academy in Waterloo, IA with academic distinction.

Kent worked two years for the Coon Rapids, IA Police Department and four years with the Audubon County Sheriff’s Office before finding his home at the Guthrie County Sheriff’s Office.

While in law enforcement, Kent has excelled in detecting alcohol and drug impaired drivers and using traffic stops to make drug cases. At the time of this biography, Kent has made over 900 hundred drug cases with over 700 of those coming from the last 13 years while employed at the Guthrie County Sheriff’s Office. Kent has removed over two hundred drug impaired drivers from Iowa’s roadways and over two hundred alcohol impaired drivers removed from Iowa’s roadways.

In a three-week period in the summer of 2019, Kent was the case deputy on “Operation 1975”.

During this three-week period, two cases in the city of Bayard (population 471) converged into one, resulting in twenty drug offenders arrested, twelve search warrants executed and thirteen drug dealers placed in county jail. Of the twenty cases, seventeen were felony cases. A total of thirty-two felony charges were filed and sixty-eight misdemeanor charges were filed. A total of four people with warrants were located during the search warrants and most importantly, five children were removed from unsafe homes. All of the suspects arrested were convicted. Kent says the best things about the raids were not the drugs seized, or people arrested; it was the children being removed from drug infested homes and the comradery and team work the officers displayed during this time period.

Kent has been a member of Iowa Narcotics Officers’ Association for approximately 15 years. While working with the Audubon County Sheriff’s Office, Kent was an active member of the Western Iowa Drug Task Force. Kent has handled two K9’s – both of which have received awards from their certifying organization. Kent taught for four years at the AC-GC High school teaching DMACC criminal justice classes to high school students and considers teaching youths a great joy and responsibility.

Kent’s awards and recognitions include: academic honors from the Iowa Law Enforcement Academy, numerous letters of recognition and thanks from citizens and fellow law enforcement professionals, Relentless Pursuit Awards 2011 and 2012 - Desert Snow, Commissioner’s Special Award for Excellence in Traffic Safety – Iowa Governor’s Traffic Safety Bureau, Certificate of Recognition - Iowa House of Representatives, Congressional Record - United States House of Representatives – Second Session of the 114th Congress, Mothers Against Drunk Driving “Hero” – MADD, Letter of Commendation - Assistant U.S. Attorney Craig Gaumer for work in a heinous child pornography case involving a three-month-old baby and a six-year-old child, LECC Award – former United States Attorneys Sean Berry and Nicholas Klinefeldt for assisting MINE Task Force agents in removing twenty-four pounds of liquid methamphetamine from Interstate 80, letter of commendation from United States Senator Joni Ernst, and Medal of Valor – Iowa Narcotics Officers Association.

Kent has presented his “Fortitude Through the Firefight” presentation at conferences and in-service training sessions all over Iowa and has reached approximately one thousand law enforcement professionals during those presentations.

Detective Lee Smith

Detective Lee Smith currently serves as the Lead Fugitive Apprehension Investigator with the Dakota County Sheriff’s Office in Minnesota. With nearly two decades in law enforcement, Lee’s career has focused on long-term investigations, specialized undercover operations, and high-impact K9 interdiction.

A seasoned instructor and tactical leader, Lee has served as both agent and Team Leader for the Dakota County Drug Task Force (DCDTF), where he supervised a team of agents and directed both long term narcotics investigations and high-risk enforcement actions for both narcotics and violent crime. His background as a Special Deputy US Marshal and his SWAT experience has allowed him to bridge the gap between complex investigative strategies and tactical execution.

Lee’s operational expertise focuses on the infiltration and dismantling of international drug trafficking organizations (DTOs). As a cornerstone undercover agent, he was in direct contact with international DTOs for years and conducted many high-stakes operations involving the direct purchase of bulk quantities of methamphetamine and fentanyl from these DTOs. His investigative work has resulted in over 75 federal indictments and the seizure of more than 400 pounds of methamphetamine, 18 pounds of heroin/fentanyl, 33 firearms, and $800,000 in currency. He has been recognized at both the regional and national levels, receiving multiple "Case of the Year" honors for his persistence and leadership in complex narcotics cases.

In addition to his undercover work, Lee is experienced in task force K9 operations. He orchestrated the selection and training of his K9, Gunnar, transitioning him from a shelter dog into a dual-certified narcotics detection asset recognized by the USPCA and NPCA. Over 60 deployments, the team was responsible for the seizure of 1,020 pounds of methamphetamine, 73,150 counterfeit fentanyl pills, $458,758 in currency, numerous pounds of cocaine and fentanyl, and multiple firearms. These deployments resulted in awards for Case of the Quarter and Year for his USPCA region, and Case of the Quarter for national USPCA organization. Lee also conducted continuous training with handler groups in the Minneapolis/Saint Paul area, focusing on advanced detection and behavioral correction.

Lee holds a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice Leadership from Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota. His instruction focuses on teaching advanced investigative strategies that allow investigators and task forces to effectively track, infiltrate, and dismantle organized criminal networks through the combined use of undercover assets and specialized K9 teams.

Detective Sergeant Nate Borg

Nate began his career in 2010 as a Patrol Officer for the McLaughlin Police Department in McLaughlin, South Dakota, a rural area located within the boundaries of the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation.

In 2011, Nate relocated his family to Sturgis, South Dakota after accepting a position as a Patrol Officer for the Sturgis Police Department. As a Patrol Officer and former Drug Recognition Expert, Nate quickly developed a knack for apprehending impaired drivers and interdicting narcotics traveling through South Dakota on I-90.

Currently serving as a Detective Sergeant assigned to a regional drug task force serving Northwest South Dakota, Nate has a wealth of knowledge to share relating to criminal interdiction and developing cases from start to finish.

Nate will instruct Furthering the Case (From Roadside to Conviction).

Sergeant Pete Eng (Retired)

Beginning his career in 1994, Pete has served the State of South Dakota as a State Trooper, Deputy Sheriff, Police Officer, K-9 Handler, Drug Recognition Expert, Field Training Officer, and most recently as a Patrol Sergeant.

Pete recently retired as a Patrol Sergeant/K-9 Handler for the Edmunds County Sheriff's Office in North Central South Dakota but will continue to serve in a part-time capacity at various agencies across South Dakota.

While at Edmunds County, Pete was a team member of the North Central South Dakota Multi-Jurisdictional Criminal Enforcement Team, and he previously served on the James Valley Drug Task Force and the now-defunct South Central Drug Task Force.

Throughout his career, Pete handled a total of four Police Service Dogs and excelled in the area of criminal interdiction and has been integral in the seizure of millions of dollars of drugs and drug proceeds.

Pete will be assisting with hands-on Proactive Patrol Tactics courses.