SearchSystems Editorial

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 September 25, 2026.

About this guide

Winnebago County, Illinois, has about 284,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate), and arrests there are reported to the FBI by the Winnebago County Sheriff's Office, ten city agencies and four campus, state or other agencies. An arrest leaves the same records whoever makes it: the arresting agency's report, the record of anyone held at the county jail, and, if the State's Attorney files charges, a case in the Circuit Court of Winnebago County. This guide says who keeps each one, what it costs and who may see it, with the arrest counts each agency reported.

This guide covers who makes arrests, how many arrests, booking and the jail, finding an arrest, copies, cities and common questions.

Related guides: Winnebago County public records, Illinois arrest records, Illinois inmate search and Illinois criminal records.

Who Makes Arrests in Winnebago County

The Winnebago County Sheriff's Office is the county agency that reports arrests to the FBI for Winnebago County. It reported 1,921 arrests for 2025.

Arrests inside ten of the county's cities are reported to the FBI by an agency of the city's own, listed here with the Census population and what each reported:

  • Rockford, 147,486 residents: 4,728 arrests reported for 2025.
  • Loves Park, 23,636 residents: 539 arrests reported for 2025.
  • Machesney Park, 22,839 residents: 636 arrests reported for 2025.
  • Roscoe, 10,981 residents: 255 arrests reported for 2025.
  • South Beloit, 7,983 residents: 233 arrests reported for 2025.
  • Rockton, 7,861 residents: 338 arrests reported for 2025.
  • Winnebago, 2,907 residents: 32 arrests reported for 2025.
  • Cherry Valley, 2,888 residents: 201 arrests reported for 2025.
  • Pecatonica, 2,058 residents: 11 arrests reported for 2025.
  • Durand, 1,383 residents: 5 arrests reported for 2025.

A city on that list is reported separately whether the officers are the city's own or the sheriff's under contract; the FBI's list does not say which.

The FBI's agency list also places these agencies in Winnebago County: Rock Valley College (campus police); the Rockford Park District, Greater Rockford Airport and Rockford Metro Centre (other).

How Many Arrests Each Agency Reports in Winnebago County

Each agency reports its arrests to the FBI by month, and the FBI publishes them on the Crime Data Explorer. These are the full-year totals, all offenses, as the FBI held them on October 8, 2026; a year with months missing or not reported is left out.

  • Rockford: 4,728 for 2025, 4,687 for 2024, 4,129 for 2023, 3,805 for 2022, 3,355 for 2021 and 5,626 for 2020.
  • Winnebago County Sheriff's Office: 1,921 for 2025, 1,715 for 2024, 2,045 for 2023 and 2,161 for 2022.
  • Machesney Park: 636 for 2025, 674 for 2024, 753 for 2023 and 723 for 2022.
  • Loves Park: 539 for 2025, 577 for 2024, 495 for 2023, 564 for 2022 and 634 for 2021.
  • Rockton: 338 for 2025, 322 for 2024, 239 for 2023 and 186 for 2022.
  • Roscoe: 255 for 2025, 82 for 2024, 51 for 2022 and 78 for 2021; 2023 is missing months.
  • South Beloit: 233 for 2025, 157 for 2024, 176 for 2023, 155 for 2022 and 122 for 2021.
  • Cherry Valley: 201 for 2025, 206 for 2024, 208 for 2023 and 114 for 2022.
  • Winnebago: 32 for 2025, 31 for 2024, 66 for 2023, 34 for 2022, 41 for 2021 and 0 for 2019; 2020 is missing months.
  • Pecatonica: 11 for 2025, 4 for 2024, 4 for 2023 and 16 for 2022.
  • Durand: 5 for 2025, 7 for 2024, 5 for 2023, 3 for 2022, 2 for 2020 and 0 for 2019; 2021 is missing months.

Together, the 11 agencies with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 8,899 arrests that year. The same agencies with both 2025 and 2024 complete reported 8,899 in 2025 against 8,462 in 2024, up 5.2 percent.

Through June 2026, the ten agencies with every month so far on file reported 4,265 arrests, against 4,405 in the same months of 2025.

Booking: Where People Arrested in Winnebago County Are Held

A person kept in custody after an arrest in Winnebago County is held at the county jail, whichever agency made the arrest, apart from the short stay some city departments' own holding cells allow; a person cited and released at the scene is not booked at all. The jail's record of each person held, with the charges, is a public record of the arrest, and the court file takes over from there.

On an average day in 2024 the jail held about 730 people, down from about 810 in 2019. Its rated capacity in 2023, the last year with a capacity figure, was 1,324 beds, and it ran at 58 percent of it that year. The figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data.

SearchSystems opened and checked the jail page of the Winnebago County Sheriff's Office at inmates.winnebagosheriff.com (page title: Winnebago County Sheriff's Office -- Inmate Inquiry), which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 25, 2026.

A person sentenced to prison serves the sentence in a facility of the Illinois Department of Corrections, whose inmate locator is at idoc.illinois.gov/offender/inmatesearch.html.

How to Find Out About an Arrest in Winnebago County

For Winnebago County the place to look is the case index of the Circuit Court of Winnebago County, which shows whether charges were filed and the next court date (the court records page SearchSystems verified is at circuitclerk.wincoil.gov/access-court-records, phone 815-319-4500).

Illinois is one of the states that lets anyone look up another person's statewide criminal history: conviction information is public under the Uniform Conviction Information Act, through the Illinois State Police. That record shows what agencies reported to the state, which is wider than one county's court index but can lag it.

Getting a Copy of an Arrest Record in Winnebago County

The report of an arrest is released by the agency that made it; the jail and the court hold their own records of the same event, but not the report. Under the Illinois Freedom of Information Act the agency must answer within 5 business days, with one 5-day extension, and it may charge copying only after the first 50 pages.

  • An arrest by the Winnebago County Sheriff's Office: ask its records unit.
  • An arrest in Rockford, Loves Park, Machesney Park, Roscoe, South Beloit, Rockton or another of the cities listed above: the records unit of the agency that reports for that city; the city guides linked above name each city's records office.
  • An arrest by Rock Valley College, the Rockford Park District or Greater Rockford Airport: the records office of the agency involved.
  • The court file of a case that was filed: the Circuit Court of Winnebago County, through the court records page at circuitclerk.wincoil.gov/access-court-records, phone 815-319-4500.
  • Your own statewide record: a name-based or fingerprint-based request to the Illinois State Police.

Cities in Winnebago County: Who Reports the Arrests

The FBI lists a separate arrest reporting agency for ten of the 11 cities in Winnebago County: Rockford, Loves Park, Machesney Park, Roscoe, South Beloit, Rockton, Winnebago, Cherry Valley, Pecatonica and Durand. New Milford has no separate reporting agency in the FBI's list.

Wherever in the county the arrest happens, a person kept in custody goes to the county jail and the case goes to the Circuit Court of Winnebago County.

SearchSystems has a guide to the offices of these cities in Winnebago County, with the 2024 Census Bureau population; a city with its own arrest records guide opens there:

Frequently Asked Questions

How many arrests are made in Winnebago County each year?

Rockford reported 4,728 arrests to the FBI for 2025, and the 11 agencies with every month of 2025 on file reported 8,899 between them.

How do I find out if someone is in jail in Winnebago County?

Ask the Winnebago County Sheriff's Office; its jail page SearchSystems verified is at inmates.winnebagosheriff.com.

Where are people arrested in Winnebago County booked?

Those kept in custody go to the county jail, run by the Winnebago County Sheriff's Office; a person cited and released at the scene is not booked.

Are arrest records public in Winnebago County?

The court files of criminal cases are public, and so is the statewide criminal history kept by the Illinois State Police: conviction information is public under the Uniform Conviction Information Act. The arrest report itself is released by the agency that made the arrest, under the Illinois Freedom of Information Act.

How do I get a copy of an arrest report in Winnebago County?

From the agency that made the arrest: the Winnebago County Sheriff's Office for its own arrests, or the agency that reports for the city where it happened. Under the Illinois Freedom of Information Act the answer is due within 5 business days, with one 5-day extension.

Is this the official Winnebago 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.