PORTSMOUTH, Va. — Overall crime in Portsmouth is trending in the right direction, but the full picture remains complicated as police work on community solutions.
Portsmouth Police Chief Stephen Jenkins presented first-quarter numbers to city leaders, covering January through March of this year, and compared them to the same period in 2025. Total crimes are down more than 5%, and the number of people falling victim to crime dropped by nearly 6%.
"While we continue to see positive trends in our overall crime numbers, there are some challenges that we continue to address as an organization and as a city, and it does require us to remain vigilant," Jenkins said.
When it comes to the most serious violent offenses, the numbers are encouraging. Aggravated assaults, which include shootings, stabbings, and violent fights, dropped more than 14%. The number of people hurt in those assaults fell by more than 27%. Forcible rapes are down 80% compared to this time last year.
While the city did see homicides in the early part of the year, Jenkins said investigators have favorable information on those cases and expect to have them resolved before the end of the year. One homicide was ruled justifiable in a self-defense case involving people who knew each other.
"They were known offenders that resided together, there was a struggle over a firearm as a result of a fight, and ruled as self-defense. We're continuing with that investigation, but at this time, there would not be any charges sought in relation to that," Jenkins said.
However, not everything is moving in the right direction. Robberies ticked up from 25 to 28 cases. Abductions and kidnappings jumped 71%, though Jenkins noted most of those are domestic situations where one person blocks another from leaving during an argument, which carries felony charges under Virginia law.
"Abduction and kidnapping saw a 71% increase. Now, most of these are domestic-related. That means something as simple as we engaged in some type of argument or dispute. I try to leave, but you block my doorway. That is an abduction," Jenkins said.
Thefts are a growing concern across Portsmouth neighborhoods. Larcenies from businesses and buildings saw a significant increase, as did motor vehicle thefts. Police pointed to a familiar pattern of people leaving their cars running or their keys inside while running a quick errand.
Jenkins said a big part of what is driving the theft increases is substance abuse. People struggling with addiction are turning to shoplifting and commercial burglaries to support their habits.
"A lot of those are because of individuals dealing with some level of substance abuse challenges that they're out, obviously, trying to feed their habit. Just this Sunday, in the parking lot over at the Lowe's, I saw a gentleman physically loading up some items into the back of a car, about five or six Craftsman weed eaters, blowers, you name it, he was loading up in the car, no receipt," Jenkins said.
Drug violations overall are up 22%F, a number Jenkins said reflects both more arrests and a deeper problem on Portsmouth streets. Fentanyl is at the center of the drug crisis, hitting neighborhoods.
The narcotics unit recovered 74 grams of fentanyl in just one arrest this quarter, along with 18 firearms, after taking down a man connected to a regional robbery ring operating across Hampton Roads.
"If you lay a grain of salt on your finger, when you relate that to fentanyl, that's enough to kill a person if cut wrong. A lot of times when we're dealing with our overdoses, unfortunately, our folks are dying as a result of overdoses from fentanyl," Jenkins said.
To address these issues, Portsmouth has launched wraparound services for domestic violence victims, brought in outside experts to support families of homicide victims, and expanded its violence interrupter program to connect community members to resources before situations turn deadly.
"A homicide, oftentimes that person has died, but they've left behind a family, regardless of their lifestyle, who loved them. We in the city of Portsmouth did not have a network to be able to support those families," Jenkins said.
During spring break, the city put its community-first approach to the test. Through a partnership with Portsmouth United, Pivot for Peace, and dozens of local nonprofits, the city hosted 38 events across Portsmouth neighborhoods. The events included STEM programs, boxing, field trips, and job training aimed at keeping kids off the streets.
Larcenies and motor vehicle thefts each dropped 48% compared to spring break last year.
"This is not about the police department telling you what you should be doing. This is really the citizens and folks that are really engaged stepping up to the plate and helping us to make our city safer," Jenkins said.
The department is planning a similar programming push during summer break. Jenkins said the same crime data he uses is available to any Portsmouth resident on the department's website, searchable by date range and block.
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