Unlike regions that recorded an increase in the number of thefts in the city, six neighborhoods in Niterói recorded no occurrence in the four main criminal indicators during the first half of 2025. Of this group, three belong to the Oceanic Region: Cafubá, Jacaré and Santo Antônio. In addition to them, Jurujuba, Pé Pequeno and Tenente Jardim closed the period without records.
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Based on the data collection carried out by GLOBO, due to the low number of cases reported at police stations, some neighborhoods were grouped together, such as Jardim Imbuí, a neighborhood in the Oceanic region, which ended up merging with Piratininga.
Positive point, the district located between Piratininga and Jurujuba has a historical mark: no theft has been recorded in the region for five years; In other words, since 2020, Crime Map monitoring has not reported thefts involving passers-by, vehicles, cell phones or collectives in the locality, which ended up having a positive impact on Piratininga’s data.
Other places experienced a low incidence of crime between January and June. This is the case of Cachoeira and Viçoso Jardim, who each recorded only one vehicle theft.
Another neighborhood that attracts attention is that of Viradouro, which is home to one of the largest communities in the city, with the constant action of the Comando Vermelho (CV), which, according to residents’ testimonies, prevents thefts in the area. The neighborhood had only two thefts reported by passers-by during the semester and, rate-wise, it is one of the safest overall in the city.
In five years – from 2020 to the first half of 2025 – the Viradouro district has only recorded three vehicle thefts, two cell phone thefts, three thefts from passers-by and only one in a collective.
The survey also showed a significant drop in cell phone thefts in areas of the city that have recently seen clashes between criminals.
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This is the case of Charitas, which led the reduction with a drop in incidents of 75%. The neighborhood is home to Morro do Preventório, the largest favela in Niterói, with an estimated population of around 5,400 people, according to 2022 IBGE census data.
Following this, Fátima, Maria Paula and Morro do Estado recorded a 50% decrease in phone theft records. The latter is home to one of the city’s largest communities, Morro do Estado, with 3,111 inhabitants, according to the IBGE.
In the vehicle theft indicator, the largest declines were observed in Cubango (-50%), Sapê (-40%) and Maria Paula (-33%).
Thefts committed by passers-by have decreased in 11 neighborhoods of Niterói. The highest point was the São Lourenço district, with a drop of 83%. Other localities, such as Vila Progresso, São Francisco, Engenho do Mato, Fátima, Gragoatá and Maravista, reduced the index by half (-50%). The drop was also recorded in Caramujo (-40%), Morro do Estado (-29%), Maria Paula (-25%) and Ingá (-9.5%).
In September, Niterói was recognized as one of the safest cities in the country by Gallup’s Global Safety Report 2025, which highlighted reductions in violent crime and investments in technology, prevention and community integration.
In a note, the town hall informs that among the main actions underway which have contributed to reducing crime are the reinforcement of 250 military police officers per day on the streets, in addition to the reinforcement of civilian police officers in the city’s police stations, through the payment of RS 19 million per year. In addition, the city hall claims to have tripled the total number of municipal guards in August this year, reaching 800 agents, and highlights the use of technology and intelligence in the field of public security.
“The Niterói City Integrated Public Security Center (Cisp) monitors the city 24 hours a day with more than 600 cameras, directing teams in real time and providing evidence for investigations. It also has 120 smart cameras distributed across 38 portals that identify irregular vehicles and ShotSpotter: a system that detects gunshots and sends the location in real time to the Cisp and police forces,” the note states.
For its part, the Military Police claims to have intensified its operational actions focused on crime prevention throughout its patrol area. According to the company, the strategies adopted resulted in a third quarter with historic records and unprecedented crime rates. In the comparison between the third quarter of 2024 and 2025 (period not analyzed in the Crime Map), the institution highlighted a 53% decrease in vehicle thefts, a 33% decrease in street thefts and a 6% decrease in attacks on commercial establishments.
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