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 24, 2026.
Sumter County, South Carolina, has about 105,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A person kept in custody after an arrest in Sumter County is held at the county jail, run by the Sumter 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: Sumter County public records, Sumter County arrest records, Sumter County warrants, Sumter County criminal records, Sumter County court records, South Carolina arrest records and South Carolina inmate search.
Finding Someone in Custody in Sumter County
The county jail, run by the Sumter County Sheriff's Office, holds everyone kept in custody after an arrest in Sumter County, from every agency.
SearchSystems opened and checked the jail page of the Sumter County Sheriff's Office at sumtercountysc.gov/departments/a_-_d/detention_center/index.php (page title: Welcome to Sumter County, SC), phone 803-436-2340, Monday to Friday 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 24, 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 803-436-2340.
The Sumter County Jail by the Numbers
On an average day in 2023 the jail held about 280 people, up from about 190 in 2019. Its rated capacity in 2023 was 305 beds, and it ran at 91 percent of it that year. The figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data.
Sumter County has about 105,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate), so the jail holds about 26 people for every 10,000 residents.
Who Books People Into the Sumter County Jail
The Sumter County Sheriff's Office and the agency that reports for Sumter make the arrests that end in a booking in Sumter County.
The FBI's agency list also places five state agencies and one state police unit in Sumter County (the arrest records guide names each one).
The largest arrest counts reported to the FBI were Sumter's 699 for 2025 and the Sumter County Sheriff's Office's 676 for 2025.
Together, the two agencies in Sumter County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 1,375 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 Sumter County arrest records.
From the Jail to State Prison
A sentence of more than a year is served in state prison, not the jail; the South Carolina Department of Corrections lists its inmates at doc.sc.gov/inmate-search-disclaimer.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I find an inmate in Sumter County?
Ask the Sumter County Sheriff's Office at 803-436-2340; its jail page SearchSystems verified is at sumtercountysc.gov.
How many people are in the Sumter County jail?
About 280 on an average day in 2023, the latest year in the Vera Institute's jail data, against a rated capacity of 305 beds.
What is the phone number for the Sumter County jail?
803-436-2340, the number on the page of the Sumter County Sheriff's Office SearchSystems verified.
Where do people sentenced to prison in Sumter County go?
To a facility of the South Carolina Department of Corrections; its inmate locator is at doc.sc.gov/inmate-search-disclaimer.
Is this the official Sumter 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.