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 24, 2026 and September 28, 2026.
Ponca City, Oklahoma, in Kay County, has about 24,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A person kept in custody after an arrest in Ponca City is held at the county jail, run by the Kay 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: Ponca City public records, Kay County inmate search, Ponca City arrest records, Ponca City warrants, Ponca City criminal records, Ponca City court records, Oklahoma arrest records and Oklahoma inmate search.
Finding Someone in Custody in Ponca City
The county jail, run by the Kay County Sheriff's Office, holds everyone kept in custody after an arrest in Ponca City, from every agency.
SearchSystems opened and checked the jail page of the Kay County Sheriff's Office at courthouse.kay.ok.us/176/Kay-County-Sheriffs-Office (page title: Kay County Sheriff's Office | Kay County, OK), phone 580-362-3250, 1101 W Dry Road Newkirk, OK 74647, which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 28, 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 580-362-3250.
The Kay County Jail by the Numbers
On an average day in 2023 the jail held about 310 people, up from about 250 in 2019. Its rated capacity in 2019, the last year with a capacity figure, was 361 beds, and it ran at 70 percent of it that year. The figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data.
Kay County has about 43,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate), so the jail holds about 72 people for every 10,000 residents.
Who Books People Into the Kay County Jail
The Kay County Sheriff's Office and the agency that reports for Ponca City (filed by the FBI as Ponca City Police Department) make the arrests that end in a booking in and around Ponca City.
The FBI's agency list also places one more agency in Kay County: District Attorneys Council at Drug Task Force 8 (other agency).
The largest arrest counts reported to the FBI were Ponca City's 743 for 2025, the Kay County Sheriff's Office's 120 for 2025 and Blackwell's 97 for 2025.
Together, the five agencies in Kay County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 1,034 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 Ponca City arrest records.
From the Jail to State Prison
A sentence of more than a year is served in state prison, not the jail; the Oklahoma Department of Corrections lists its inmates at okoffender.doc.ok.gov.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I find an inmate in Ponca City?
Ask the Kay County Sheriff's Office at 580-362-3250; its jail page SearchSystems verified is at courthouse.kay.ok.us.
How many people are in the Kay County jail?
About 310 on an average day in 2023, the latest year in the Vera Institute's jail data, against a rated capacity of 361 beds.
What is the phone number for the Kay County jail?
580-362-3250, the number on the page of the Kay County Sheriff's Office SearchSystems verified.
Where do people sentenced to prison in Kay County go?
To a facility of the Oklahoma Department of Corrections; its inmate locator is at okoffender.doc.ok.gov.
Is this the official Ponca City website?
No. SearchSystems.net is an independent public records guide, online since 1997. It links to the official city, county, court and state offices described above and does not hold records, charge for them or take requests.