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 on September 23, 2026.
Middlesex County, New Jersey, has about 890,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A person kept in custody after an arrest in Middlesex County is held at the county jail, run by the Middlesex 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: Middlesex County public records, Middlesex County arrest records, Middlesex County warrants, Middlesex County police reports, Middlesex County property records, New Jersey arrest records and New Jersey inmate search.
Finding Someone in Custody in Middlesex County
The county jail, run by the Middlesex County Sheriff's Office, holds everyone kept in custody after an arrest in Middlesex County, from every agency.
SearchSystems opened and checked the custody page of the Middlesex County Sheriff's Office at middlesexcountynj.gov/government/departments/department-of-public-s... (page title: Inmate Lookup | Middlesex County NJ), which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 23, 2026.
Someone booked recently shows on that page; someone cited and released at the scene, or held a few hours at a city station, does not.
The Middlesex County Jail by the Numbers
On an average day in 2023 the jail held about 560 people, up from about 530 in 2019. Its rated capacity in 2023 was 1,436 beds, and it ran at 39 percent of it that year. The figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data.
Middlesex County has about 890,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate), so the jail holds about 6 people for every 10,000 residents.
Who Books People Into the Middlesex County Jail
The Middlesex County Sheriff's Office and the agencies that report for New Brunswick, Perth Amboy, Sayreville, Carteret, South Plainfield, South River and nine more cities make the arrests that end in a booking in Middlesex County.
The FBI's agency list also places two campus police departments, one other agency and one state police unit in Middlesex County (the arrest records guide names each one).
The largest arrest counts reported to the FBI were Perth Amboy's 1,548 for 2024, Edison Township's 1,517 for 2025 and Woodbridge Township's 1,193 for 2025.
Together, the 21 agencies in Middlesex County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 7,840 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 Middlesex 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 Middlesex County serves the sentence in a facility of the New Jersey Department of Corrections, whose inmate locator is at www20.state.nj.us/DOC_Inmate/inmatefinder?i=I.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I find an inmate in Middlesex County?
Look on the custody page of the Middlesex County Sheriff's Office at middlesexcountynj.gov. It covers people booked into the county jail.
How many people are in the Middlesex County jail?
About 560 on an average day in 2023, the latest year in the Vera Institute's jail data, against a rated capacity of 1,436 beds.
Where do people sentenced to prison in Middlesex County go?
To a facility of the New Jersey Department of Corrections; its inmate locator is at www20.state.nj.us/DOC_Inmate/inmatefinder?i=I.
Is this the official Middlesex 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.