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 30, 2026.
Columbus County, North Carolina, has about 50,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A person kept in custody after an arrest in Columbus County is held at the county jail, run by the Columbus 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: Columbus County public records, Columbus County arrest records, Columbus County warrants, Columbus County criminal records, Columbus County court records, North Carolina arrest records and North Carolina inmate search.
Finding Someone in Custody in Columbus County
The county jail, run by the Columbus County Sheriff's Office, holds everyone kept in custody after an arrest in Columbus County, from every agency.
SearchSystems opened and checked the jail page of the Columbus County Sheriff's Office at columbussheriff.com (page title: Columbus County Sheriff's Office | Dedicated To Serve), phone (910) 642-6551, 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 (910) 642-6551.
The Columbus County Jail by the Numbers
On an average day in 2024 the jail held about 200 people, up from about 160 in 2019. Its rated capacity in 2019, the last year with a capacity figure, was 192 beds, and it ran at 82 percent of it that year. The figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data.
Columbus County has about 50,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate), so the jail holds about 39 people for every 10,000 residents.
Who Books People Into the Columbus County Jail
The Columbus County Sheriff's Office and the agencies that report for Whiteville, Tabor City, Chadbourn, Lake Waccamaw and Fair Bluff make the arrests that end in a booking in Columbus County.
The FBI's agency list also places one more agency in Columbus County: the State Park Rangers at Lake Waccamaw (state agency).
The largest arrest counts reported to the FBI were Lake Waccamaw's 1,153 for 2025, the Columbus County Sheriff's Office's 1,153 for 2025 and Whiteville's 352 for 2025.
Together, the six agencies in Columbus County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 2,940 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 Columbus County arrest records.
From the Jail to State Prison
A sentence of more than a year is served in state prison, not the jail; the North Carolina Department of Adult Correction lists its inmates at dac.nc.gov/dac-services/criminal-offender-searches.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I find an inmate in Columbus County?
Ask the Columbus County Sheriff's Office at (910) 642-6551; its jail page SearchSystems verified is at columbussheriff.com.
How many people are in the Columbus County jail?
About 200 on an average day in 2024, the latest year in the Vera Institute's jail data, against a rated capacity of 192 beds.
What is the phone number for the Columbus County jail?
(910) 642-6551, the number on the page of the Columbus County Sheriff's Office SearchSystems verified.
Where do people sentenced to prison in Columbus County go?
To a facility of the North Carolina Department of Adult Correction; its inmate locator is at dac.nc.gov.
Is this the official Columbus 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.