Photo of the color guard in procession during the Wilmington Police Academy ceremony.
Photo of Wilmington Police Academy recruits.
Photo of officers participating in recreational activities at the Wilmington Police Academy.
Police cadets at the academy graduation ceremony
Boy kneeling next to dog in front of a WPD police vehicle
Archive photo of WPD officer standing next to his police vehicle in front of the Public Safety Building

About the Department

The Wilmington Police Department is responsible for providing law enforcement services to Delaware’s largest city. The agency traces its roots in public safety and service to the year 1739, and presently includes 305 sworn police officers in addition to civilian support staff. The department has been accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA) since 1994 and is committed to providing professional law enforcement and investigative services.

In recent years, the Wilmington Police Department has adopted a range of research-based, proven crime reduction strategies, including:

  • Community Policing (with each and every member of the agency serving as a community policing officer);
  • CompStat Methodology (applying business management principles to policing to ensure greater levels of focus and accountability);
  • District Integrity (assigning the same officers to the same neighborhood each time they report for duty);
  • Intelligence-Led Policing (leveraging the department’s Real Time Crime Center to help gather and disseminate intelligence to all personnel);
  • Group Violence Intervention (blending law enforcement and social service provision into a holistic crime prevention strategy); and
  • The integration of NIBIN firearm and ballistic tracing and analysis and the launch of an embedded Crime Gun Intelligence Center in partnership with the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). 

Click here to learn more about our crime strategies and our public safety plan.

Mission Statement

The mission of the Wilmington Police Department is to work in partnership with our residents to make our communities safer through the delivery of professional law enforcement services and a comprehensive approach designed to meet the public safety needs of our City. This mission will be fostered by every member of the department.

Message from Chief Wilfredo Campos

Campos

Thank you for visiting the Wilmington Police Department’s website. This platform includes information about our agency and the services we provide, as well as contact information and other resources for residents and visitors to Delaware’s largest city.

I am honored to serve as your Chief of Police following more than 26 years of service to our City's police department. 

Over the past several years, we have worked to critically examine our department and our approaches to crime prevention and suppression. We have instituted significant changes in the way we police our neighborhoods, embracing technology and innovation, and leveraging intelligence and other resources to combat crime. These approaches have helped to bring about historic reductions in crime, and we look forward to continuing our efforts to ensure we build on this substantial progress and further enhance public safety and quality of life for all of our residents and visitors.

Click here for a message from Chief Wilfredo Campos detailing his experience and his vision for the Wilmington Police Department.

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