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Gainesville Police report 16% annual drop in crime, flag stolen firearms and gunshot-detection pilot
Summary
Police Chief Nelson Moy reported a 16% reduction in the department’s total crime index year over year, highlighted a rise in reports for an underreported crime type tied to more victims coming forward, said 138 firearms were stolen last year (94 from vehicles), and described a no-cost pilot to install 27 gunshot-detection sensors with the Loss Prevention Research Council and Flock.
Nelson Moy, chief of the Gainesville Police Department, presented the department’s fourth-quarter and year-end numbers and said the city’s total crime index fell about 16% between 2024 and 2025.
Moy noted the department continues to focus on violent crime, traffic safety, neighborhood outreach and recruiting. He cautioned that an increase in an underreported crime metric likely reflects more victims coming forward rather than a clear rise in underlying victimization; that reporting trend, Moy said, can be an indicator of increased trust in reporting channels.
The chief and other presenters discussed property and conveyance burglaries. Moy said the department recorded 138 firearms stolen in the prior year, 94 of which were taken from vehicles, and emphasized that many stolen guns were legally possessed but not optimally stored.
Captain (Criminal Investigations) reported the Major Crimes and Investigations units’ caseloads and closures and highlighted a recent federal fraud conviction in which an individual stole over $7,000,000 and received a 20-year federal sentence; the department has increased victim education about scams.
On technology and response, Major Jamie Krennick described a partnership with the University of Florida’s Loss Prevention Research Council and a vendor identified as Flock to pilot gunshot-detection sensors. The pilot would place 27 sensors across a 6–8 block radius near University Avenue; the chief said the installation is through a research partnership and will cost the city no money, with the devices intended to alert the department more quickly when shots are fired.
Commanders and commissioners discussed hotspots (including corridors near Southwest 20th and areas near campus), the co-responder unit that pairs officers with mental-health clinicians, and the department’s recruitment numbers. Sergeant Joseph Castor reported 34 hires in 2025 from 462 applications, 12 recruits graduated from the police academy and the department had roughly 27 sworn vacancies and 11 civilian vacancies at the time of the report.
Chief Moy said the department is monitoring recent high-profile incidents, handling officer-involved investigations according to protocol, and emphasizing communication and de-escalation during public demonstrations. Commissioners thanked the department for community engagement and urged continued transparency and long-term trend reporting.
