13News Now spoke with Virginia Beach Police Chief Paul Neudigate about the latest numbers.
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Murders and shootings are down significantly in Virginia Beach, according to the latest data.
Mass shootings are down more than 28%, with 15 more shootings recorded in the resort city in 2024. In 2023, that number was just over 20.
“Even though it's a small number, it's a big percentage, but every single one of them means something to this community, and it means something to our families,” said Virginia Beach Police Chief Paul Neudigate. Told.
This statistic is for the first quarter of 2024 and is a comparison from 2023 to 2024. The number of murders has decreased by more than 50% since 2023, with only three murders in the city so far.
Neudigate said all of that still has a devastating impact on the community.
“There were seven murders, and now there are three,” Neudigate said. “That means there are now four families who didn't have to go through the pain and suffering that we went through this time last year.”
When asked what has reduced crime so much, Neudigate said it's police officers, new technology and a partnership with the city's federal prosecutor.
He said several perpetrators of the violence are currently in prison.
Mr Neudigate said: “I cannot speak confidentially about some cases, but we have locked up a number of people over the past few months.” “I think we are now seeing the consequences of these people being incarcerated and not being able to go out on the streets and pull the trigger.”
Property crime is also down across the city, but Neudigate said input from the community could help make Virginia Beach a safer place.
VBPD announced the launch of the “Keeping Virginia Beach Safe” program. This is part of the Real Time Crime Center (RTCC) initiative, which aims to build safer communities and make crime easier to solve.
Residents can register or integrate their cameras with VBPD to help solve crimes that may have been caught on camera.
Neudigate said it is asking anyone with a camera to consider joining the system.
