City of Cocoa News Crime Rate Decreases For 2nd Year In A Row

Through community partnerships, community engagement, and outreach efforts, the crime rate in the City of Cocoa has decreased 4.1% compared to 2021. This is the second consecutive year the City of Cocoa has seen a decrease in the crime rate. In 2022, it had decreased 11.1%. 

Reported property crimes are down 7%, which includes burglaries down nearly 24%, larceny down 2.8%, and vehicle thefts down 21%. Nearly all crimes that make up the violent crime category were down this past year including sexual assaults down 66.7%, robberies down 17.1%, and murders down 100% since there were no reported murders this past year in the Cocoa community. Arrests were also up 24% from the previous year. Unfortunately, because we had an increase in aggravated assaults, the violent crime category had an increase of 18.9% in 2022 compared to 2021. A closer look at aggravated assaults shows that these crimes are very targeted, wherein in the majority of cases, the victim knew the offender, and arrests were made in 68% of the cases due to continued operations targeted at driving down these crimes. 

The brave men and women of the Cocoa Police Department continue to have a positive impact on the community and reduce crime by implementing a number of initiatives like the Chief's walks and continuing community engagement and event outreach. These efforts give residents the opportunity to become more involved and take ownership of the safety and security in their own neighborhoods. Cocoa PD has also taken advantage of new technological opportunities to enhance crime-fighting efforts including the deployment of officers on electronic bikes to be more visible in the community. 

Crime data is collected through Officer reports and documented in the records management system database. The Records Division is required to review all reports and make sure crimes are accurately reported to the state as required by law. Each year, the data is submitted to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) who then reviews and certifies the data. In addition to submitting the information to the state, Cocoa's Crime Analyst, who is certified through FDLE and is trained to review the latest crime statistics, identifies trends and develops strategies to determine what is driving criminal activity and how to effectively deploy resources to continue to drive down crime.

Cocoa PD will continue to work with community partners to engage residents in crime-fighting efforts to make the Cocoa community a safe place to live, work and play.