Przyklek named director of DEC’s Division of Law Enforcement

New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Commissioner Basil Seggos in January named Captain Karen Przyklek as the director of DEC’s Division of Law Enforcement (DLE). She is the division’s first-ever woman director.

Przyklek’s promotion follows a successful 26-year career with DLE, during which “she played a vital role investigating environmental crimes, assisting the public, and effectively enhancing the division’s work,” according to a Jan. 19 DEC news release.

“Throughout her 26 years at DEC, Director Przyklek demonstrated a steadfast commitment to protecting communities from polluters and safeguarding natural resources,” Commissioner Seggos said in the release. “I’m honored to promote to her new role as Director as she breaks the glass ceiling and I am confident that she will lead DEC’s outstanding Law Enforcement Officers with dignity and dedication.”

Przyklek began as an environmental conservation police officer patrolling New York City in 1996, and later became an investigator with the Division’s Bureau of Environmental Crimes Investigation. In 2014, Przyklek was promoted to the rank of lieutenant, followed by captain in 2019. Most recently, Przyklek served as captain of the Division’s Special Operations Group, which includes the statewide K9 Unit, Homeland Security/Radiation Unit, Wildlife Response Team, and Haz Mat Training Unit. 

Przyklek helped create DLE’s Environmental Forensic Unit (EFU), one of the first such units in the nation, to collect forensic evidence at contaminated environmental and wildlife crime scenes. The EFU was deployed to multiple significant events across the state and brought the unit to the forefront of environmental sampling and evidence collection, the DEC said. Przyklek is a 9/11 first responder and assisted DEC’s response following the 2001 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center. Prior to joining the department, she served as a deputy with the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office in Rochester.