Shootings, Violent Crime Down in Virginia Beach

Virginia Beach Police Chief Paul Neudigate presented crime statistics to City Council on Oct. 8, highlighting progress in key areas, including shootings and other violent crime, as well as property crime. 

Through Sept. 30, 2024, Virginia Beach has seen a 54.5% decrease in criminal homicides when compared to 2023, along with significant reductions in shooting violence and other violent crime (defined below). 

Violent Crime (Homicide, Rape, Robbery, and Aggravated Assault) 

Total Part I Violent Crime is currently down 15.3% from the same period in 2023, in large part due to a marked reduction in shooting violence. Through September, the number of shooting victims has decreased by 53.7%, and the number of shooting incidents has decreased 47.3% when compared to last year. 

Along with the sharp decrease in shooting violence, Virginia Beach has seen a 22.9% decrease in rapes and an 18.9% decrease in aggravated assaults. Robbery is the only Part I Violent Crime statistic that has increased, going up by 4.5%. 

Virginia Beach’s violent crime rate continues to lead the way when compared with cities of similar size across the United States. In 2023, Virginia Beach had fewer homicides and homicides per 100,000 residents than cities such as Oakland, Atlanta, Minneapolis and Miami. 

Property Crime (Burglary, Vehicle Theft, Theft from Vehicle, and Larceny) 

Total Part I Property Crime is down 9% when compared to the same period last year, and 8.3% lower than the three-year average from 2021-2023. 

“The vast majority of our citizens, the vast majority of our visitors to this great city, this is what’s going to impact them,” Neudigate said. “None of us want to wake up and our car is gone. None of us want to wake up and our car is broken into. I give credit to our team out there, because they have invested a lot of time in trying to reduce these numbers.” 

The decrease is driven by a 30% drop in motor vehicle theft, a 29.9% drop in thefts from motor vehicles, and a 4.9% decrease in residential burglaries. Neudigate credited the Virginia Beach Police Department’s increasing use of automatic license plate reader cameras, including Flock Safety cameras, for playing a role in the decrease in these crimes. 

“They’re able to identify the stolen cars much easier with a quicker turnaround on arrests, quicker turnaround on getting these vehicles back to their rightful owners,” Neudigate said. 

Virginia Beach has seen small increases in property crime, including a 3.6% increase in commercial burglaries and a 4.3% increase in larcenies and all other thefts.