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 on September 23, 2026.
New Hanover County, North Carolina, has about 243,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A police report belongs to the agency whose officer wrote it, so which office holds a report from New Hanover County depends on where the incident happened: the New Hanover 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: New Hanover County public records, New Hanover County arrest records, New Hanover County warrants, New Hanover County inmate search, New Hanover County criminal records, North Carolina arrest records and North Carolina inmate search.
Which Agency Holds a Report from New Hanover County
A crime, incident or collision report belongs to the agency whose officer wrote it, and that agency releases it, not the court, the jail or the prosecutor.
In New Hanover County that is the New Hanover 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 agency list also places two state agencies, one campus police department and one other agency in New Hanover County, each with a records office of its own.
Reports from the New Hanover County Sheriff's Office
The New Hanover County Sheriff's Office is the county agency; it had 203 violent and 1,167 property crimes reported for 2025 and reported 1,294 arrests for 2025.
Its reports come from its records unit. The office's page SearchSystems verified is its jail page, at p2c.nhcgov.com/p2c/jailinmates.aspx (page title: New Hanover Sheriff's Office P2C), which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 23, 2026.
Reports from the City Agencies in New Hanover County
The four cities the FBI lists in New Hanover County with a reporting agency of their own, with the police records page SearchSystems verified where the city has a guide:
- Wilmington: 518 violent and 3,724 property crimes reported for 2025; 2,952 arrests reported for 2025.
- Carolina Beach: 23 violent and 92 property crimes reported for 2025; 472 arrests reported for 2025. The Carolina Beach police department's page is at carolinabeach.gov/220/Contact-the-Police, phone 910-458-2988 (verified September 26, 2026).
- Wrightsville Beach: 7 violent and 74 property crimes reported for 2025; 335 arrests reported for 2025.
- Kure Beach: 1,153 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: New Hanover County in 2025
The four agencies in New Hanover County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 751 violent and 5,057 property crimes to the FBI that year, each one a report taken by the agency that holds it.
Together, the five agencies in New Hanover County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 6,206 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 nhcgov.com/193/Information-Requests (page title: Information Requests | New Hanover County, NC).
A defendant who has been charged gets the report through the case: the District Attorney, (910) 772-6600, handles discovery for pending cases.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I get a police report in New Hanover County?
From the agency whose officer took it: the New Hanover 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 New Hanover 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 New Hanover County Sheriff's Office?
From its records unit. 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 New Hanover 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.