Abstract
This study examined the impact of community policing on the effectiveness of crime prevention in Adamawa North Senatorial District, Nigeria. The study was anchored on Social Control Theory and adopted a descriptive survey research design. The study population comprised residents of the five Local Government Areas constituting Adamawa North Senatorial District. Primary data were collected using a structured questionnaire, while secondary data were obtained from relevant scholarly and official sources. Out of 400 questionnaires distributed, all were retrieved for analysis. Data was analyzed using descriptive statistics and multiple linear regression analysis with the aid of Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 22 at the 0.05 level of significance. The findings revealed that community participation and police–community intelligence sharing had significant positive influences on the effectiveness of crime prevention, while implementation challenges significantly undermined the effectiveness of community policing in the study area. Specifically, enhanced collaboration between the police and community members improved intelligence gathering, increased public confidence, and strengthened the prevention of crimes such as banditry, kidnapping, cattle rustling, and armed robbery. Conversely, inadequate funding, poor logistics, insufficient police personnel, weak stakeholder collaboration, and low public trust were identified as the major constraints affecting effective implementation. The study concluded that strengthening community participation, improving intelligence-sharing mechanisms, and addressing institutional challenges are critical to enhancing the effectiveness of community policing and sustainable crime prevention in Adamawa North Senatorial District. The study recommended strengthening police–community partnerships through regular community engagement, institutionalizing effective intelligence-sharing mechanisms, and addressing identified implementation challenges through improved funding, logistics, personnel development, and interagency collaboration.