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 24, 2026.
Beaufort County, South Carolina, has about 202,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A police report belongs to the agency whose officer wrote it, so which office holds a report from Beaufort County depends on where the incident happened: the Beaufort 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 South Carolina Freedom of Information 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: Beaufort County public records, Beaufort County arrest records, Beaufort County warrants, Beaufort County inmate search, Beaufort County criminal records, South Carolina arrest records and South Carolina inmate search.
Which Agency Holds a Report from Beaufort 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 Beaufort County that is the Beaufort 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 places the Highway Patrol in Beaufort County in Beaufort County; a report taken on a state highway by it comes from that agency's own records office.
The FBI's agency list also places five state agencies and one campus police department in Beaufort County, each with a records office of its own.
The Hardeeville Police Department and the Yemassee Police Department are each listed by the FBI across several counties including Beaufort County, so their arrests are not broken out for Beaufort County here.
Reports from the Beaufort County Sheriff's Office
The Beaufort County Sheriff's Office is the county agency; it had 275 violent and 1,148 property crimes reported for 2025 and reported 1,935 arrests for 2025.
Its reports come from its records unit. The office's page SearchSystems verified is its jail page, at beaufortcountysc.gov/detention-center/inmate-inquiry-system.html (page title: Inmate Inquiry System), which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 24, 2026.
Reports from the City Agencies in Beaufort County
The three cities the FBI lists in Beaufort County with a reporting agency of their own, with the police records page SearchSystems verified where the city has a guide:
- Bluffton: 24 violent and 272 property crimes reported for 2025; 330 arrests reported for 2025.
- Port Royal: 24 violent and 227 property crimes reported for 2025; 294 arrests reported for 2025. The Port Royal police records page is at portroyal.org/285/Submit-a-Police-Report, phone 866-925-1961 (verified September 26, 2026).
- Beaufort: 43 violent and 296 property crimes reported for 2025; 546 arrests reported for 2024.
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: Beaufort County in 2025
The four agencies in Beaufort County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 366 violent and 1,943 property crimes to the FBI that year, each one a report taken by the agency that holds it.
Together, the three agencies in Beaufort County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 2,559 arrests to the FBI that year, and each arrest is a report of its own.
What the South Carolina Freedom of Information Act Requires
Under the South Carolina Freedom of Information Act the agency must answer a request within 10 business days, or 20 for records more than two years old, and it may charge search, retrieval and copying at the agency's actual cost. The request goes to the agency that holds the report, in writing, and does not have to say why the report is wanted.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I get a police report in Beaufort County?
From the agency whose officer took it: the Beaufort County Sheriff's Office for its own arrests, or the agency that reports for the city where it happened. Under the South Carolina Freedom of Information Act the answer is due within 10 business days, or 20 for records more than two years old.
How long does an agency in Beaufort County have to answer?
Under the South Carolina Freedom of Information Act, within 10 business days, or 20 for records more than two years old. It may charge search, retrieval and copying at the agency's actual cost.
Who has a crash report from a state highway in Beaufort County?
The state agency whose officer took it; the FBI lists the Highway Patrol in Beaufort County in Beaufort County.
How do I get a report from the Beaufort County Sheriff's Office?
From its records unit. Under the South Carolina Freedom of Information Act the answer is due within 10 business days, or 20 for records more than two years old.
Is this the official Beaufort 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.