VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) — Virginia Beach police are bridging the gap between officers and the community. 

The department is starting a Hispanic Citizens Police Academy specifically for the Latino community, with classes being taught entirely in Spanish. 

Police tell 10 On Your Side they hope this helps improve relations between the department and the people they serve. 

They say they want to make sure everyone living in the city knows help is out there if they need it. 

Norfolk recently introduced a similar program.

“We want to alleviate their anxiety, the anxiety of the police that they should not have, but it’s hard to do that if they don’t know us,” said Master Police Officer David Nieves. 

The Hispanic Citizens Police Academy will go over the same material as the English version of the citizen’s academy, but the department says it will also touch on areas like how to interact with officers and even how to contact 911. 

VBPD said unfortunately many in the Hispanic community who fall victim to crime don’t reach out to police due to a language barrier or because they may be undocumented and are afraid to come forward. 

Adelina Fields said she’s aware of this happening too.

“We know a lot of people here that were in bad situations and they didn’t want to call the police because they were afraid,” Fields said.

Fields works at La Tapatia Dos, a small Latin-American grocery store directly across the street from the second precinct of the Virgina Beach Police Department.   

“Everybody’s scared. Bad experience, stuff that you hear. We hear a lot of stuff in this store,” she said.

Police tell us they hope starting this program will put the Latino community at ease and help strengthen their relationship. 

“The fact that they’re not documented, we do not care. What we do care is that you get the help that you need if you’re a victim. We’re not going to ask you any questions like that. We just want to make sure that you’re safe,” said Nieves. 

The Hispanic Citizens Academy will meet for 10 weeks, on Mondays, beginning October 14 and running through December 23, from 6:30 p.m. – 9:30 p.m., at Seatack Recreation Center at 141 S. Birdneck Road, Virginia Beach.

If you are interested or know anyone who may benefit from this service, please email Monica Nieves-Pestana at msuarezp@vbgov.com or leave a message at 757-385-1338