Reviewed and updated October 9, 2026 by the SearchSystems.net editorial team. The arrest and crime counts are the ones each agency reported to the FBI, as the FBI held them on October 8, 2026. Every office link was opened and checked against the office's own site between September 23, 2026 and September 28, 2026.
Gaston County, North Carolina, has about 242,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A police report belongs to the agency whose officer wrote it, so which office holds a report from Gaston County depends on where the incident happened: the Gaston County Sheriff's Office for the unincorporated county, the agency that reports for the city inside a city. This guide names each agency, where its records page is and what the North Carolina Public Records Act requires of it.
This guide covers which agency, the sheriff's reports, the cities' reports, how many reports, what the law requires and common questions.
Related guides: Gaston County public records, Gaston County arrest records, Gaston County warrants, Gaston County inmate search, Gaston County criminal records, North Carolina arrest records and North Carolina inmate search.
Which Agency Holds a Report from Gaston County
The report of an incident is released by the agency that took it; the court and the jail hold their own records of the same event, but not the report.
In Gaston County that is the Gaston County Sheriff's Office for the unincorporated county and for any city that contracts with it for police service, and the agency that reports for a city where the city has one of its own.
The FBI's list also carries Belmont Abbey College (campus police), with a records office of its own.
The Kings Mountain Police Department is listed by the FBI across two counties including Gaston County, so its arrests are not broken out for Gaston County here.
Reports from the Gaston County Sheriff's Office
The Gaston County Sheriff's Office is the county agency; it had 16 violent and 4 property crimes reported for 2025 and reported 122 arrests for 2025.
Its reports come from its records unit, reached through the office at 704-869-6800. The office's page SearchSystems verified is its jail page, at gastongov.com/m/directory/department?did=137 (page title: Staff Directory, Sheriff), phone 704-869-6800, which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 28, 2026.
Reports from the City Agencies in Gaston County
The ten cities the FBI lists in Gaston County with a reporting agency of their own, with the police records page SearchSystems verified where the city has a guide:
- Gastonia: 772 violent and 2,516 property crimes reported for 2025; 2,754 arrests reported for 2025. The Gastonia police records page is at gastonianc.gov/citizens-online-police-reporting-system.html, phone 704-866-6702 (verified September 25, 2026).
- Mount Holly: 39 violent and 208 property crimes reported for 2025; 353 arrests reported for 2025.
- Belmont: 50 violent and 337 property crimes reported for 2025; 382 arrests reported for 2025.
- Cherryville: 16 violent and 108 property crimes reported for 2025; 184 arrests reported for 2025.
- Dallas: 4 violent and 92 property crimes reported for 2025; 279 arrests reported for 2024.
- Bessemer City: 18 violent and 86 property crimes reported for 2025; 127 arrests reported for 2025. The Bessemer City police department's page is at bessemercity.com/police-department, phone (704) 629-2235 (verified September 26, 2026).
- Cramerton: 3 violent and 93 property crimes reported for 2025; 68 arrests reported for 2025. The Cramerton police records page is at cramertonpd.org/records, phone 704.866.3300 (verified September 26, 2026).
- Ranlo: 8 violent and 28 property crimes reported for 2025; 98 arrests reported for 2025.
- Stanley: 3 violent and 45 property crimes reported for 2025; 164 arrests reported for 2025.
- Lowell: 14 violent and 52 property crimes reported for 2025; 78 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.
How Many Reports: Gaston County in 2025
The 11 agencies in Gaston County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 943 violent and 3,569 property crimes to the FBI that year, each one a report taken by the agency that holds it.
Together, the ten agencies in Gaston County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 4,330 arrests to the FBI that year, and each arrest is a report of its own.
What the North Carolina Public Records Act Requires
Under the North Carolina Public Records Act the agency must answer a request as promptly as possible; the statute sets no number of days, and it may charge the actual cost of copying. The request goes to the agency that holds the report, in writing, and does not have to say why the report is wanted.
Any other county record goes through the county records request page SearchSystems verified, at gastonianc.gov/government/public-records-requests.html (page title: City of Gastonia | Public Records Requests).
A defendant who has been charged gets the report through the case: the District Attorney, (704) 852-3113, handles discovery for pending cases.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I get a police report in Gaston County?
From the agency whose officer took it: the Gaston County Sheriff's Office for its own arrests, or the agency that reports for the city where it happened. Under the North Carolina Public Records Act the answer is due as promptly as possible; the statute sets no number of days.
How long does an agency in Gaston County have to answer?
Under the North Carolina Public Records Act, as promptly as possible; the statute sets no number of days. It may charge the actual cost of copying.
How do I get a report from the Gaston County Sheriff's Office?
From its records unit, reached through the office at 704-869-6800. Under the North Carolina Public Records Act the answer is due as promptly as possible; the statute sets no number of days.
Is this the official Gaston 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.