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.
Alleghany County, Virginia, has about 15,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate), and arrests there are reported to the FBI by the Alleghany County Sheriff's Office, one city agency and one state agency. An arrest leaves the same records whoever makes it: the arresting agency's report, the record of anyone held at the county jail, and, if the Commonwealth's Attorney files charges, a case in the Alleghany Circuit Court. This guide says who keeps each one, what it costs and who may see it, with the arrest counts each agency reported.
This guide covers who makes arrests, how many arrests, booking and the jail, finding an arrest, copies, cities and common questions.
Related guides: Alleghany County public records, Virginia arrest records, Virginia inmate search and Virginia criminal records.
Who Makes Arrests in Alleghany County
The Alleghany County Sheriff's Office is the county agency that reports arrests to the FBI for Alleghany County. It reported 120 arrests for 2025.
One city in Alleghany County reports its arrests to the FBI separately:
- Clifton Forge, 3,385 residents: 90 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.
The FBI's agency list also places one more agency in Alleghany County: the Alleghany County State Police (state police).
How Many Arrests Each Agency Reports in Alleghany County
The FBI publishes every agency's monthly arrest counts on the Crime Data Explorer. These are the full-year totals, all offenses, as the FBI held them on October 8, 2026; a year with months missing or not reported is left out.
- Alleghany County Sheriff's Office: 120 for 2025, 114 for 2024, 148 for 2023, 82 for 2022, 108 for 2021 and 193 for 2020.
- Clifton Forge: 90 for 2025, 116 for 2024, 111 for 2023, 105 for 2022, 84 for 2021 and 142 for 2020.
Together, the two agencies with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 210 arrests that year. The same agencies with both 2025 and 2024 complete reported 210 in 2025 against 230 in 2024, down 8.7 percent.
Through July 2026, the two agencies with every month so far on file reported 125 arrests, against 131 in the same months of 2025.
Booking: Where People Arrested in Alleghany County Are Held
A person kept in custody after an arrest in Alleghany County is held at the county jail, whichever agency made the arrest, apart from the short stay some city departments' own holding cells allow; a person cited and released at the scene is not booked at all. The jail's record of each person held, with the charges, is a public record of the arrest, and the court file takes over from there.
On an average day in 2025 the jail held about 82 people, up from about 61 in 2019. Its rated capacity in 2023, the last year with a capacity figure, was 34 beds, and it ran at 127 percent of it that year. The figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data.
SearchSystems opened and checked the custody page of the Alleghany County Sheriff's Office at alleghanycountysheriff.com/inmate-information (page title: Inmate Information | Alleghany County Sheriff's Office), phone 540-965-1770, wed from 9 am - 10 pm, which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 23, 2026.
That page is the place to look for someone who was booked recently; a person cited and released at the scene, or held only a few hours by a city department, will not be on it.
A person sentenced to prison serves the sentence in a facility of the Virginia Department of Corrections, whose inmate locator is at vadoc.virginia.gov/family-and-friends.
How to Find Out About an Arrest in Alleghany County
An arrest in Alleghany County can be traced in two places, depending on where the case stands: the custody page of the Alleghany County Sheriff's Office described above, for anyone booked into the county jail; the case index of the Alleghany Circuit Court, which shows whether charges were filed and the next court date (the court records page SearchSystems verified is at co.alleghany.va.us/courts, phone (540) 965-1720).
Statewide, Online Case Information System is the Virginia courts' free statewide case search.
Virginia does not let the public search another person's statewide criminal history. The record kept by the Virginia State Police goes to the person it belongs to and to employers and agencies the law authorizes; for everyone else the court's own case index is the public record of an arrest that led to a charge.
Getting a Copy of an Arrest Record in Alleghany County
The report of an arrest is released by the agency that made it; the jail and the court hold their own records of the same event, but not the report. Under the Virginia Freedom of Information Act the agency must answer within 5 working days, and it may charge the actual cost of searching and copying.
- An arrest by the Alleghany County Sheriff's Office: ask its records unit, reached through the office at 540-965-1770.
- An arrest in Clifton Forge: the records unit of the agency that reports for that city.
- An arrest by the Alleghany County State Police: the records office of the agency involved.
- The court file of a case that was filed: the Alleghany Circuit Court, through the court records page at co.alleghany.va.us/courts, phone (540) 965-1720.
- Any county record that is not posted: the county records request page SearchSystems verified is at co.alleghany.va.us (page title: Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) | Alleghany County, Virginia).
- Your own statewide record: a request to the State Police Central Criminal Records Exchange; a check on someone else needs their signed consent.
Cities in Alleghany County: Who Reports the Arrests
The FBI lists a separate arrest reporting agency for one of the two cities in Alleghany County: Clifton Forge. Iron Gate has no separate reporting agency in the FBI's list.
Wherever in the county the arrest happens, a person kept in custody goes to the county jail and the case goes to the Alleghany Circuit Court.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many arrests are made in Alleghany County each year?
The Alleghany County Sheriff's Office reported 120 arrests to the FBI for 2025, and the two agencies with every month of 2025 on file reported 210 between them.
How do I find out if someone is in jail in Alleghany County?
Look on the custody page of the Alleghany County Sheriff's Office at alleghanycountysheriff.com/inmate-information, or call 540-965-1770. It covers people booked into the county jail.
Where are people arrested in Alleghany County booked?
Those kept in custody go to the county jail, run by the Alleghany County Sheriff's Office; a person cited and released at the scene is not booked.
Are arrest records public in Alleghany County?
The court files of criminal cases in the Alleghany Circuit Court are public and can be looked up through the court. The statewide criminal history kept by the Virginia State Police is not public; you can get your own. The arrest report itself is released by the agency that made the arrest, under the Virginia Freedom of Information Act.
How do I get a copy of an arrest report in Alleghany County?
From the agency that made the arrest: the Alleghany County Sheriff's Office for its own arrests, or the agency that reports for the city where it happened. Under the Virginia Freedom of Information Act the answer is due within 5 working days; the county records request page SearchSystems verified is at co.alleghany.va.us.
Is this the official Alleghany 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.