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 30, 2026 and October 2, 2026.
Coles County, Illinois, has about 46,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A person kept in custody after an arrest in Coles County is held at the county jail, run by the Coles 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: Coles County public records, Coles County arrest records, Coles County warrants, Coles County police reports, Coles County property records, Illinois arrest records and Illinois inmate search.
Finding Someone in Custody in Coles County
A person kept in custody after an arrest in Coles County is held at the county jail, run by the Coles County Sheriff's Office, whichever agency made the arrest.
SearchSystems opened and checked the jail page of the Coles County Sheriff's Office at colesco.illinois.gov/sheriff/corrections (page title: Corrections), phone (217) 348-7332, Tuesday 9:00AM - 11:00AM, which answered when SearchSystems opened it on October 2, 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 (217) 348-7332.
The Coles County Jail by the Numbers
On an average day in 2023 the jail held about 62 people, down from about 130 in 2019. Its rated capacity in 2019, the last year with a capacity figure, was 160 beds, and it ran at 79 percent of it that year. The figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data.
Coles County has about 46,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate), so the jail holds about 13 people for every 10,000 residents.
Who Books People Into the Coles County Jail
The Coles County Sheriff's Office and the agencies that report for Charleston and Mattoon make the arrests that end in a booking in Coles County.
The FBI's agency list also places these agencies in Coles County: Eastern Illinois University and Lake Land College (campus police).
The largest arrest counts reported to the FBI were Mattoon's 588 for 2025, Charleston's 295 for 2025 and the Coles County Sheriff's Office's 45 for 2025.
Together, the three agencies in Coles County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 928 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 Coles County 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 Coles County serves the sentence in a facility of the Illinois Department of Corrections, whose inmate locator is at idoc.illinois.gov/offender/inmatesearch.html.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I find an inmate in Coles County?
Ask the Coles County Sheriff's Office at (217) 348-7332; its jail page SearchSystems verified is at colesco.illinois.gov/sheriff/corrections.
How many people are in the Coles County jail?
About 62 on an average day in 2023, the latest year in the Vera Institute's jail data, against a rated capacity of 160 beds.
What is the phone number for the Coles County jail?
(217) 348-7332, the number on the page of the Coles County Sheriff's Office SearchSystems verified.
Where do people sentenced to prison in Coles County go?
To a facility of the Illinois Department of Corrections; its inmate locator is at idoc.illinois.gov/offender/inmatesearch.html.
Is this the official Coles County website?
No. SearchSystems.net is an independent public records guide, online since 1997. It links to the official county, court and state offices described above and does not hold records, charge for them or take requests.