Eight police departments protect and serve

Return to the Discover Guide / Potomac News
Published: July 31, 2008

Eight police departments serve the towns, neighborhoods, businesses and highways of Prince William County, Manassas and Manassas Park. The Prince William County Sheriff’s Office also assists in some areas of law enforcement.

DUMFRIES

Dumfries has a chief of police and 14 full-time police officers. The force operates from a building next to the Town Hall on Main Street and provides 24-hour coverage to the town. The department is open to visitors between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m.

The Dumfries police office is at 17755 Main St., and the non-emergency number is 703-221-1111.

HAYMARKET

Five full-time officers, three of which are assigned to patrol, and five part-time auxiliary officers make up the Haymarket force. The non-emergency number is 703-753-2700. Chief James Roop heads the town’s police department.

The office is at 14710 Washington St. and is generally open from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday.

MANASSAS

The Manassas Police Department has 90 full-time sworn officers, including detectives and animal control officers. The department also has two auxiliary police officers, fifteen dispatchers, seven full-time and two part-time staff members who help with administrative duties, and five full-time and two part-time parking enforcement/community liaison staff members who enforce parking and other ordinances.

The Manassas police non-emergency number is 703-257-8000. The police chief is John J. Skinner, the fourth chief to run the department. He assumed his post on April 1, 1998. The office is at 9518 Fairview Ave.

MANASSAS PARK

The Manassas Park Police Department has 32 sworn officers, including the chief, three investigators and two school resource officers. There are seven dispatchers and one animal control officer.

The Manassas Park police non-emergency number is 703-361-1136. The chief of police is John Evans. The office is at 329 Manassas Drive. The department’s Web site is manassasparkpolice.com.

OCCOQUAN

Occoquan employs an officer to patrol the streets of the small town along the Occoquan River. The Occoquan police non-emergency number is 703-491-1918, Ext. 19. The office is in Town Hall, 314 Mill St.

PRINCE WILLIAM

The Prince William County police department is the largest in the county with more than 500 officers. Chief Charlie T. Deane has been with the force since its inception in 1970 and became the department’s second chief in 1988.

The police force includes the following units: criminal investigation, special problems, public information, K-9, motorcycle, patrol, bicycle, crime prevention, Special Tactics and Weapons Team and administrative. Other services include animal control, crossing guards and school resource officers. The department recently added a mounted unit.

County police operate from three offices: one in the McCoart Administration Center, one at the new Western District Police Station on Freedom Center Boulevard in Manassas and at the Gar-Field substation on Donald Curtis Drive in Woodbridge. The new western police station, 8900 Freedom Center Blvd., opened in fall 2006, replacing the county’s previous one on Mosby Street.

The Prince William County police non-emergency number is 703-792-6500. To reach the headquarters in Manassas, call 703-792-6515 and in Woodbridge call 703-792-7200. Police Chief Charlie T. Deane’s office is at McCoart Administration Center, 1 County Complex Court.

QUANTICO

The Quantico Police Department is run by Chief Gerald Tolson and is staffed by two full-time officers, three part-time officers, a town sergeant and five reserve officers. Prince William County dispatchers send Quantico police to incidents. Prince William police officers are called if backup is needed at other parts in the county. The Quantico non-emergency number is 703-640-7500. The office is at 405 Broadway St.

SHERIFF’S OFFICE

The Prince William County Sheriff’s Office is responsible for court security, legal processes such as serving warrants and court summons, transporting prisoners, fugitive investigations and traffic enforcement.

Sheriff Glendell Hill took office in January 2004 and was re-elected to a second term in 2007. The Sheriff’s Office is at 9311 Lee Ave. in Manassas and can be reached at 703-792-6070.

STATE POLICE

The Virginia State Police has an office at 14420 Independent Hill Drive in the Independent Hill area off Va. 234. State troopers patrol Interstates 66 and 95. The non-emergency number is 703-791-3101.

Local police departments often rely on tips from residents to help solve crimes.

Tips from people involved in programs such as Crime Solvers, Neighborhood Watch, Fleet Watch, Business Watch and Worship Watch help the Prince William County, Manassas and Manassas Park police departments catch criminals and make the county a safer place to live.

County residents who call in Crime Solvers tips have helped police arrest murderers, carjackers, burglars and other offenders and have earned cash rewards for their efforts.

The Crime Solvers number for Prince William police is 866411-TIPS or 703-670-3700. In Manassas and Manassas Park, the Crime Solvers number is 703-330-0330.

Callers don’t have to give their names or testify in court. They are assigned an identification number in case they need to phone again with further information about a crime.

Anyone who provides information leading to an arrest is eligible for a cash reward of up to $1,000. The rewards may be greater than $1,000 when individuals, groups or businesses have made additional contributions. A Crime Solvers panel decides how much reward money is given.

There are more than 200 grassroots Neighborhood Watch groups operating in Prince William County. There are also several apartment watches monitoring apartment complexes.

A police officer works with each Neighborhood Watch group, acting as a liaison between the police and the community. Police count on Neighborhood Watch members to keep an eye on their communities and report crimes or suspicious activities. Members patrol the streets in their neighborhoods to provide a visible deterrent to crime.

The program began in 1979 and is run by the county’s Crime Prevention Bureau. For more information about joining watch groups or organizing a new one, contact the bureau at 703-792-7270.

The county also has Business Watch programs based in the Potomac Mills mall, Manassas Mall and 33 other locations. The 35 businesses that participate train employees in security skills such as the protection of assets, how to spot bad checks and how to prevent shoplifting and robbery.

County police also sponsor a Fleet Watch program for businesses with large fleets of drivers, such as cable television crews, power company workers and taxi services. Thirty-three businesses with more than 1,000 vehicles participate. Drivers are trained to recognize the types of crime they may witness and to watch out for criminal activity.

The Worship Watch program began in January 1998 and includes eight places of worship.

Contact the Crime Prevention Bureau for information about the watch groups or other crime prevention services at (703) 792-7270 or .