HCSO’s Online Reporting Feature

The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) now allows more reports to be filed online using the “Online Citizen Reporting Feature.”

To use the form, the incident must have occurred in unincorporated areas of Hillsborough County, which would not include within the limits of Tampa, Plant City, or Temple Terrace.

After submitting the report, you will be given a reference number. Then you will receive a confirmation email that HCSO received your report.

After you file the report, it will be reviewed by Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office. You may be contacted if additional information is needed.

What reports can be filed online? According to the HCSO website, the following types of incidents can be reported by using the forms provided on the Internet:

• Accident Report  – The accident report form can be used to report minor traffic collisions in Hillsborough County, FL, before you leave the scene of the case. In many cases, if you were involved in a minor collision, the information must also be reported for insurance purposes.
• Animal Complaint – You can use HCSO’s animal complaint form for nuisance animals. The complaints often involve irresponsible ownership and unattended or loose animals due to neglectful or excessively barking dogs who aren’t cared for properly or supervised.
• Check Forgery – The check forgery form is used when a check has been altered by either changing the amount of the check to something that was not authorized or by changing the payee of the check to something/someone who was not authorized. HCSO’s check forgery form requires you to upload documents, including a copy of the forged check. These cases often arise after a person mails a check for a service, and after the check cleared, you notice that the amount was increased and the payee was different than what you made the check out for.
• Conservation Violation – The conservation violation form is used by the owner or manager of a property to report the illegal dumping of trash or material onto private property. The amount of trash or material discovered must be more than 15 pounds. The form requires you to upload photos.
• Credit-Debit Card Fraud – The credit-debt card fraud form can be used if your debit card or credit card was skimmed, cloned, or otherwise compromised, resulting in unauthorized transactions resulting in financial loss. You must upload documents such as your bank statement or other records.
• Harassing Phone Call – The harassing phone call form can be used for unwanted phone calls or immediate hang-ups of an annoying, harassing, or threatening nature. The form is for documentation purposes and not for pursuing criminal charges. The form requires you to upload documents related to the harassment, such as call logs or text messages.
• Identity Theft – The identity theft form can be used if someone else obtained your personal identifying information, such as your social security number, and used it to obtain credit, goods, or services, resulting in a financial loss. The form requires you to upload supporting documents such as bank statements.
• Lost Property – The lost property form can be used when the property is missing or lost. Examples of incidents of lost property involve misplacing or unintentionally dropping your mobile phone, leaving a wallet on a store counter, forgetting a purse at a restaurant, or leaving items in a location by mistake. The form should not be used to report a lost firearm or gun.
• Shoplifting/Retail Theft – The form for theft of merchandise for sale in a retail establishment can be used if the merchant has video surveillance or photo evidence of the crime. Retail theft or shoplifting involves an allegation that a person entered the store and was observed taking property belonging to the store before leaving the store with the property belonging to the store without attempting to pay for the property.

Read more about DUI arrests by the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office.

This article was last updated on Monday, June 5, 2023.