Reviewed and updated October 9, 2026 by the SearchSystems.net editorial team. The arrest counts are the ones each agency reported to the FBI, as the FBI held them on October 8, 2026. The jail figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data. Every office link was opened and checked against the office's own site between September 23, 2026 and October 9, 2026.
Panama City Beach, Florida, in Bay County, has about 20,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A person kept in custody after an arrest in Panama City Beach is held at the county jail, run by the Bay County Sheriff's Office, and the jail's record of each person held is a public record. This guide says where to look for someone in custody, what the jail holds and who books people into it.
This guide covers the search, the jail, who books people, state prison and common questions.
Related guides: Panama City Beach public records, Bay County inmate search, Panama City Beach arrest records, Panama City Beach warrants, Panama City Beach criminal records, Panama City Beach court records, Florida arrest records and Florida inmate search.
Finding Someone in Custody in Panama City Beach
The county jail, run by the Bay County Sheriff's Office, holds everyone kept in custody after an arrest in Panama City Beach, from every agency.
SearchSystems opened and checked the jail page of the Bay County Sheriff's Office at bayso.org/faqs (page title: Bay County Jail Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) | Bay County Sheriff's Office), phone (850) 747-4700, 3421 N Highway 77 Panama City, FL 32405, which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 23, 2026.
That page is the office's jail information page rather than a roster, so a search for a particular person goes through the office at (850) 747-4700.
The Bay County Jail by the Numbers
So far in 2026 the jail has held about 1,070 people on an average day, down from about 1,150 in 2019. Its rated capacity in 2023, the last year with a capacity figure, was 1,170 beds, and it ran at 106 percent of it that year. The figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data.
Bay County has about 200,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate), so the jail holds about 54 people for every 10,000 residents.
Who Books People Into the Bay County Jail
The Bay County Sheriff's Office and the agency that reports for Panama City Beach (filed by the FBI as Panama City Beach Police Department) make the arrests that end in a booking in and around Panama City Beach.
The FBI's agency list also places one campus police department, two other agencies, five state agencies and one state police unit in Bay County (the arrest records guide names each one).
The largest arrest counts reported to the FBI were Panama City's 5,444 for 2025, the Bay County Sheriff's Office's 3,365 for 2025 and Lynn Haven's 629 for 2025.
Together, the five agencies in Bay County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 9,959 arrests to the FBI that year. Those kept in custody were booked into the county jail; a person cited and released at the scene was not.
The counts, agency by agency and year by year, are in Panama City Beach arrest records.
From the Jail to State Prison
The jail holds people awaiting trial and people serving short sentences. A person sentenced to prison in Bay County serves the sentence in a facility of the Florida Department of Corrections, whose inmate locator is at fdc.myflorida.com.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I find an inmate in Panama City Beach?
Ask the Bay County Sheriff's Office at (850) 747-4700; its jail page SearchSystems verified is at bayso.org/faqs.
How many people are in the Bay County jail?
About 1,070 on an average day so far in 2026, against a rated capacity of 1,170 beds.
What is the phone number for the Bay County jail?
(850) 747-4700, the number on the page of the Bay County Sheriff's Office SearchSystems verified.
Where do people sentenced to prison in Bay County go?
To a facility of the Florida Department of Corrections; its inmate locator is at fdc.myflorida.com.
Is this the official Panama City Beach website?
No. SearchSystems.net is an independent public records guide, online since 1997. It links to the official city, county, court and state offices described above and does not hold records, charge for them or take requests.