What Happened in Bellingham on Thursday, January 8th, 2026
Yesterday in Bellingham, police responded to 48 incidents, down 6% from 51 the day before. No violent crimes were reported, and officers made 9 arrests.
The most common incident type was Other Non-criminal, accounting for 12 of 48 reports (25% of total). The most active neighborhood was Downtown with 14 incidents.
Overall activity was 33% above the 30-day average of 36 incidents per day.
Incident Categories
Yesterday, Bellingham reported incidents across 8 categories. Other Non-criminal led with 12 incidents (25% of total), followed by Disorderly Behavior (Non-Physical) with 8 and Theft with 4.
Other Criminal — up 1300% over the past 7 days (14 incidents this week vs 1 the prior week).
Incident Category Breakdown
What's in “Other Non-criminal”?
Overview
Violent Crime
No violent crimes were reported in Bellingham yesterday.
Arrests
Bellingham police made 9 arrests yesterday, involving 8 individuals.
Arrests accounted for 19% of all incidents. Of the 9 arrests, 3 were Court Order Violations, 3 were Drugs & Narcotics, and 1 was Fraud & Forgery. This is down 10% from the 10 arrests the prior day.
| Time | Offense | Category | Neighborhood |
|---|---|---|---|
| 07:34 | EMBEZZLEMENT | Fraud & Forgery | Cordata |
| 08:56 | VIOLATION OF A COURT ORDER | Court Order Violations | Cordata |
| 11:16 | VIOLATION OF A COURT ORDER | Court Order Violations | Birchwood |
| 12:30 | DRUG - NARCOTICS VIOLATIONS | Drugs & Narcotics | Downtown |
| 12:30 | DRUG - NARCOTICS VIOLATIONS | Drugs & Narcotics | Downtown |
| View All | |||
Neighborhood Activity
Yesterday, incidents were reported across 11 neighborhoods in Bellingham. Downtown had the highest activity with 14 incidents, followed by Meridian with 6 and Lettered Streets with 6.
Downtown accounted for 29% of all incidents — a quarter or more of the city's activity in a single neighborhood.
1 specific location has appeared in the top 10 most active blocks for 4 or more of the last 7 days, including 500 Grand Ave (4 of 7 days).
Explore all neighborhoods and their trends in Bellingham Neighborhood Safety. →
Hourly Breakdown
Activity in Bellingham yesterday peaked between 12 PM – 1 PM with 7 incidents during that hour. The quietest period was 3am with no incidents reported.
Overnight (12–6 AM) saw 7 incidents, morning (6 AM–12 PM) had 13, afternoon (12–6 PM) had 21, and evening (6 PM–12 AM) had 7. Afternoon was the busiest period overall.
Thursdays in Bellingham typically average 38 incidents. Yesterday's total of 48 is 10 incidents above that 8-week average (26% higher).
How Does This Compare?
The 7-day rolling average is 45.9 incidents per day, above the 30-day average of 36.2 — suggesting a busier-than-normal stretch.
Key Patterns
This Week Is Pacing Higher Than Last
Through Thursday (4 days), this week has recorded 195 incidents — 73% more than the 113 reported at the same point last week. If the pace holds, the week could finish well above last week’s total.
Other Criminal Up 1300% This Week
Other Criminal incidents have risen sharply: 14 in the past 7 days compared to 1 the prior 7 days — a 1300% increase.
Unusually Busy for a Thursday
48 incidents is 26% above the 8-week Thursday average of 38. That's 10 more incidents than expected. This marks 7 consecutive days above the rolling average.
Full Incident Log
This log contains all 48 incidents reported to the Bellingham Police Department on Thursday, January 8th, 2026. Published Friday, January 9th, 2026.
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