Patrol Operations Bureau includes, the Patrol Services Division and the Directed Patrol Division. The Bureau is headed by a Deputy Chief of Police who is responsible for the day to day operations of the Bureau.

The Patrol Operations Bureau is the largest in the Department with more than 160 employees.

The Patrol Services Division is responsible for answering an estimated 140,000  (911) calls in the 14 districts  that cover the City of Wilmington. A specially formed Downtown Unit which includes 3 Police Mounts, patrol the downtown corridor based along the Cape Fear River.

The Directed Patrol Division provides multiple services within the Bureau: Vice/Narcotics, Crime Prevention, POP (Problemed Oriented Policing) Teams, K-9 Unit, Warrant Squad, Traffic Unit and the Violent Crime Task Force.

These units help to implement Problemed Oriented Policing strategies throughout the City.

Support Operations Bureau includes Criminal Investigations and the Support Services Section. The Support Services Bureau is headed up by a Deputy Police Chief who is responsible for the day to day operations of the Bureau.

The Support Operations Bureau lends support services to our Patrol Bureau through Criminal Investigations ,Human Resources, Professional Development, Training, Recruiting, Budget and Purchasing and a variety of other Operational functions.

This Bureau has the largest number of Civilian Support Staff. Civilian employees work in a variety of assignments, including Crime Scene Investigations, Data Entry, Telephone Response Call Takers, DCI Clerks, Property Technicians, Cadets and Administrative Assistants.