How Do I Report a Crime on the Installation?

3 minute read March 7, 2022

The information contained on this website is designed to educate and inform service members and their families on their personal legal affairs. Nothing contained in the website is a substitute for the competent legal advice of a licensed attorney. Service members and their families seeking legal advice should consult the staff of the nearest installation Legal Assistance Office.

Report a crime to the nearest military police agency if the victim is on a military installation or if military personnel are involved. In any case, don’t take matters into your own hands. Military police agencies are open 24 hours a day, seven days a week — and you can call to report a crime or walk in to file a report.

Military law enforcement agencies

Each service branch has its own military police force, including:

Military Police (Army)
Marine Corps Law Enforcement
Master-at-Arms or Navy Police
Security Forces (Department of the Air Force)

However, the Coast Guard is a law enforcement agency within the Department of Homeland Security.

The military criminal investigative organizations associated with each service branch also get a copy of any crime reports. These are listed below:

How to report a crime on the installation

You can report installation crimes, or crimes involving military personnel, directly to your installation provost marshall’s office (for the Army and Marine Corps), the chief master-at-arms (for the Navy), or the law enforcement desk (for the Air Force). Check your installation directory or call your installation operator, who can connect you with the military police.

You can also report crimes through the following investigative offices:

Army: The USACIDC Report a Crime website explains how to report a crime in the Army and includes a contact list of installation U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Division Command offices in the continental United States. You can also email USACIDC directly at usarmy.belvoir.usacidc.mail.crime-tips@mail.mil.
Navy: Visit the Naval Criminal Investigative Service Report a Crime website to report criminal and force protection threats within the Navy and Marine Corps through the text, web and app tip line, where you can submit a report on the site. You can also learn how to report crimes by an anonymous text or through an anonymous smartphone app, which you can download from the site.
Air Force: Find the Air Force Office of Special Investigations unit nearest you by calling 877-246-1453 toll free, or by calling your installation operator. You can also report a crime by email: hqafosi.watch@us.af.mil.