Crime in Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina

Roanoke Rapids's crime rate

There were 834 crimes reported in Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina in 2019, the most recent year crime data is available. Adjusted for population, the city’s annual crime rate is 5,810 incidents for every 100,000 people.

How does Roanoke Rapids compare?

Roanoke Rapids has one of the highest overall crime rates of any U.S. city. For comparison, the national total crime rate is 2,489 incidents for every 100,000 people.

Roanoke Rapids's overall crime rate is 113% higher than the overall crime rate in North Carolina. Statewide, there were 286,231 crimes reported in 2019, or 2,729 for every 100,000 people.

What types of crimes are being committed?

The FBI's crime rate includes seven crime categories: three property crimes -- larceny, burglary, and motor vehicle theft, and four violent crimes -- aggravated assault, robbery, rape, and murder.

Property crime

The vast majority of crimes in America are property crimes, accounting for 85% of total crimes in 2019. In Roanoke Rapids, property crimes also account for about 85% of all offenses.

Property crime is much more prevalent in Roanoke Rapids than it is nationwide. There were 706 property crimes in Roanoke Rapids in 2019, or 4,919 for every 100,000 residents. Meanwhile, the national property crime rate is 2,110 incidents per 100,000 people.

Larceny

Larceny is by far the most common type of property crime in the U.S. It is also the most commonly committed type of property crime in Roanoke Rapids. There were 518 larcenies reported in Roanoke Rapids in 2019, or 3,609 for every 100,000 people. Nationwide, the larceny rate is 1,550 per 100,000.

Burglary

There were 166 break-ins reported in Roanoke Rapids in 2019, or 1,157 for every 100,000 residents. For reference, there were 341 reported burglaries for every 100,000 people nationwide in 2019.

Motor Vehicle Theft

Across the United States, the annual motor vehicle theft rate is 220 for every 100,000 people. In Roanoke Rapids, meanwhile, there were 22 motor vehicle thefts in 2019, or 153 for every 100,000 people.

Violent crime

Violent crime accounts for a relatively small share of crimes nationwide. These offenses, which are generally more egregious than property crimes, account for about 15% of the nearly 8.2 million offenses reported across the U.S. in 2019. In Roanoke Rapids, violent offenses also account for a 15% share of all reported crime.

At 892 incidents for every 100,000 people, the violent crime rate in Roanoke Rapids is well above the national violent crime rate of 379 offenses per 100,000 people. Law enforcement in Roanoke Rapids reported a total of 128 violent crimes in 2019.

Aggravated Assault

Aggravated assault is by far the most common type of violent crime reported in the U.S. It is also the most commonly reported violent offense in Roanoke Rapids. There were 84 aggravated assaults reported in Roanoke Rapids in 2019, or 585 for every 100,000 people. Nationwide, the rate is far lower, standing at 250 aggravated assaults per 100,000 people.

Robbery

Robbery is the second most common type of violent crime in America. There were 32 robberies reported in Roanoke Rapids in 2019, a rate of 223 robberies for every 100,000 residents. For comparison, the national robbery rate was 82 per 100,000 in 2019.

Rape

There were 8 rapes reported in Roanoke Rapids in 2019, or 56 for every 100,000 people. Nationwide, there were 139,815 rapes in 2019, a rate of 43 per 100,000 people.

Murder

There were 4 homicides committed in the city in 2019. Adjusted for population, the murder rate in Roanoke Rapids is 27.9 murders for every 100,000 people, more than five times higher than the national murder rate of 5 per 100,000 people.

Roanoke Rapids compared to other cities in North Carolina

Roanoke Rapids has a higher crime rate than the vast majority of all comparable cities in North Carolina. To be considered comparable, a city must have a complete 2019 FBI crime report and population of 5,000 or more.

Here are all comparable cities ranked by total crime rate. Click any bar or city name to see more about crime in that city.

Click here to see a list of all city crime pages.

Click here to see a list of all state crime pages.

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