COMMUNITY POLICING AND IT’S IMPACT ON CRIME PREVENTION. (THE CASE OF IKA NORTH-EAST LGA OF DELTA STATE, NIGERIA.)
Abstract
This study investigated the impact of community policing on crime prevention in Ika North East Local Government Area (LGA) of Delta State, Nigeria. The motivation for this research stemmed from the persistent rise in criminal activities such as robbery, cultism, and theft in the area, despite the implementation of community policing initiatives. The primary objectives were to examine the influence of community policing on crime reduction, assess the effect of police credibility on police-community relations, and identify major challenges impeding the success of community policing. A descriptive research design was adopted, and data were collected using a structured questionnaire administered to 400 residents drawn from five purposively selected communities. A total of 372 valid responses were analyzed using SPSS version 25.0, employing both descriptive statistics and simple linear regression analysis to test two hypotheses. Findings revealed that community policing significantly contributes to crime prevention efforts in the LGA, with a strong positive relationship between community involvement and crime reduction. However, the perceived credibility of the Nigerian Police Force showed a weak and statistically insignificant effect on the effectiveness of community policing. Challenges such as poor sensitization, inadequate logistics, low community participation, and corruption were also highlighted as barriers to successful implementation. The study concludes that community policing remains a promising strategy for grassroots security enhancement, but its full potential can only be realized through improved police-community collaboration, institutional reforms, and public trust-building measures. This research contributes to existing knowledge by providing localized empirical evidence from Ika North East LGA and offers valuable recommendations for policymakers, security agencies, and community stakeholders.
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