The Criminal Investigation Division provides investigative follow-up for a number of crimes including traffic homicide, arson, auto theft, burglary, felony vandalism, fraud, theft. The Criminal Investigations Division is comprised of the following units: Burglary, Auto Theft/Larceny, Rapid Offender Control Squad (ROC), Traffic Homicide, and Economic Crimes.  

The main number for the Criminal Investigations Division is (954) 828-4900 from 8am to 4pm, Monday through Friday. If you wish to provide information that may assist detectives, please visit the Help Solve a Crime section of our website.

Narcotics and Prostitution complaints are handled by the Special Investigations Division at (954) 828-5661.

The Criminal Investigations is divided into the following specialized units:

Property Crimes Unit:
The Property Crimes Unit provides investigative follow-up for all thefts of motor vehicles, vessels, heavy equipment and any other felony larcenies.  The Property Crimes Unit also investigates the theft of items taken after an individual has unlawfully entered a person’s residence, business, vehicle, or boat.  After a uniformed police officer or public safety aide has conducted a preliminary investigation, the case will be assigned to a detective for further investigation.  The Detectives review each case and pursue any leads that could likely lead to the arrest of a suspect or the recovery of stolen property.  Since the likelihood of recovering a victim’s property many times rests on the reporting of each item’s serial number, it is strongly recommended that this information be kept in a safe place.  Please visit the Crime Prevention section of our web site for tips that will greatly reduce your chances of becoming a burglary victim.

Rapid Offender Control (ROC) Unit:
The Rapid Offender Control Unit, or ROC Unit, focuses on four major crimes within the City of Fort Lauderdale.  Those crimes are felony theft, burglary of a vehicle, burglary of a structure, and robbery.  The primary objective of the ROC Unit is to respond to in-progress or just-occurred crimes and immediately begin the investigation.  Their goal is to gather as much information as possible while at the scene and relay it to the patrol officers on the street to better enable them to locate and apprehend the offender(s).  In addition, ROC Unit detectives work closely with the Property Crimes Unit to develop investigative leads and apprehend known offenders.

Economic Crimes Unit
The Economic Crimes Unit is responsible for investigating the offenses of fraud, embezzlement, identity theft and arson. Members of the unit are also assigned to a federal fraud task force sponsored by the US Secret Service. Detectives work closely with the State Attorney’s Office to determine if an offense is criminal or civil in nature. Investigators also work with members of the business community to assist other detectives in cases where financial data has been taken during another offense and used fraudulently. Since many of these offenses cross multiple jurisdictions, members of this unit work cooperatively with other municipal, state and federal law enforcement investigators. Please visit our Identity Theft Resource and Response Center for additional information and links.

Members assigned to the Economic Crimes Unit may be reached at (954) 828-5557 from 8am to 4pm, Monday through Friday.

Forensic Unit

The Forensic Unit functions in support of the Criminal Investigations Division. Its primary mission is the processing of major crime scenes such as homicides, suicides, accidental and suspicious deaths, assaults, sexual batteries, robberies, child abuse and other felony crimes. Members of this unit are tasked with the collection, interpretation, preservation and court presentation of physical evidence from crime scenes.