Our advice
- A bank balance is the cheapest insurance in this system. Of all the ways an arrest can end, only an accepted bribe leaves the bag in your hands, and it depends on clean money you set aside earlier.
- Jail time is closer to a progression bar than a punishment. It carries across wipes and opens tattoos and Shipments sections, so a sentence at the wipe is not a pure loss.
ROB RUN Prison: Arrests, Surrender, Bribes and Jail Time, step by step
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Knocked out with the option to surrender on the F key. In-game screenshot from Steam Community / projectpugz Know what an arrest and a surrender cost you
Treat the bag as the stake once you mask up. An arrest takes it, a Criminal death in the city loses the inventory, the desert takes all loot, and Surrender to Feds takes everything you own.
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Illustration, not the in-game view: a bribe is paid from money in the bank. Illustration by RobRunGame.app Launder some cash before a heist
Cops take the payment out of your bank balance. Launder some money before a heist so the option is there if one catches you.
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Inside the prison hall, with jail time shown at the top and a quest to speak with the Tattoo Artist. Name blurred. In-game screenshot from Steam Community / Féver Settle on a server, then walk out
The server list sits inside the prison, in a room with a poster on the wall. Pick the server your friends play on, note its number, then follow the exit icon.
Where people get stuck
Surrendering to a cop to save your gun
Sources disagree on this. The support center says equipped gear stays with you, but two players say surrendering loses everything. Until a patch note settles it, a bribe paid from the bank is the safer plan.
Hoping to bribe with dirty cash
The bribe is drawn from the bank. Launder money before you start a job, because an arrest is too late to fix an empty balance.
Walking out of prison on the wrong server
Pick your friends' server from the list inside the prison before you exit. One player says a first exit on the wrong server keeps you apart; another says you can go back to prison and switch.
How do you end up in prison in ROB RUN?
Every ROB RUN character starts as an ex-convict. In an October 28 Steam post, before launch, Kefir (Kefir Games) said everyone walks out of prison broke and homeless and sleeps at Lenny’s motel until a plot is affordable. There are three ways back inside.
- An arrest as a Criminal. Cops and rival Criminals can go after you only once you mask up in Looty Bay as a Criminal. One player says cops cannot arrest you before that, though civilians can still be shot.
- Surrender to Feds. This is a voluntary trip to the prison, covered below.
- The weekly wipe. When the seven-day reset lands, whatever you built up, from plots to cash, is converted into jail time and authority.
A city arrest is a short stop. Two players report jail timers of a minute and a half and a minute and 15 seconds.
What do you lose when you are arrested or surrender?
The bag is almost always the stake. Equipped gear depends on how the encounter ends, and the sources split on one case. Costs by source, as of November 11, 2026:
| Outcome | Your stuff | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Arrested by a cop | Bag taken, equipped kit kept | Players |
| Surrender to a cop | Bag taken, equipped gear kept | Support center |
| Surrender to a cop | Everything lost | Two players |
| Bribe accepted | Bag contents kept | Support center |
| Criminal dies in Looty Bay | Inventory lost | Support center |
| Death in the desert | All loot lost | Support center |
| Surrender to Feds | All belongings confiscated | Players |
The surrender row is the open question. Kefir’s support center says a surrender to the cops costs the bag but leaves your equipped gear alone. Two players say surrendering loses everything, and they advise letting the cop make the arrest instead. Several players agree that an arrest strips the bag but leaves your equipped kit, your gun included.
Dying unmasked is different: a Civilian killed in the city loses nothing. For the police side of an arrest, see our ROB RUN cop guide.
How does a bribe work?
A bribe is the only arrest outcome that saves your bag, and it needs preparation. With money in the bank, you can offer the arresting cop a bribe; if the cop accepts, every item in your bag stays yours.
Two players say the payment is drawn from the bank, so it has to be money you have already laundered.
A single player guide adds two details:
- A successful bribe kept everything on the player and sent the player out of the map with no penalty beyond the bribe itself.
- During one arrest the offered amount was 10,000, and the player still had a gun afterwards.
Treat that as one offer from one arrest. No source we have gives a fixed bribe price.
What is Surrender to Feds?
Surrender to Feds is the voluntary way into the prison, used to move servers or start clean. Several players say the option sits on the world map and under Settings, then Other.
Kefir’s own fix for a failed party invite runs through it. When a friend sits on a different server, the support center has you take the Prison entry on the global map and confirm Surrender to Feds. You then change to that friend’s server from inside the prison and send the invite again.
The price is steep. Players say it confiscates all your current belongings and hands you a prison sentence instead. Two players say some people surrender early on purpose to reach a newer server with fewer established players, accepting the loss. For how servers are listed, read our ROB RUN server guide.
How is your sentence decided?
Your sentence tracks your wealth. Kefir said in its October 2, 2026 FAQ, before launch, that more wealth when the wipe arrives means a longer sentence. The support center page on the weekly wipe says plots, bases, weapons and cash become jail time and authority.
Players describe the same pattern after launch: the more the Feds take from you, the longer the sentence. One player adds that money spent on purchases and upgrades also raises the authority you receive.
The charges themselves are less clear, and the two accounts below do not line up:
- One player guide says that at a wipe the federal court reads your record, with charges such as escape, murders and contraband, then seizes and values your vehicles, properties, bank accounts and land.
- A different player says 29 murders added 0 prison time and 0 authority.
One player who surrendered early on a server got a final sentence of one year, for two years of jail time in total. No source we trust gives a cash-per-year rate, so this page does not list one. Our ROB RUN wipe guide explains the weekly reset in full.
What does jail time unlock?
Jail time is a currency you keep, not a wait you sit through. One player says a multi-year sentence is never served in the cell, and calls jail time the currency for things you cannot get without a wipe. The support center lists accumulated jail time among what survives the wipe, along with cosmetics, your player name, tutorial progress and settings. Two players say authority also carries over between resets.
The Shipments tab is where it pays off: Kefir marks some of its items as needing jail time to unlock. Players tie jail time to authority and say longer stretches open rewards.
| Reward | What it needs |
|---|---|
| New tattoos | Enough years served |
| Locked Shipments sections | A set number of years |
| Prison task board | A longer sentence or jail time |
| More prison areas | Higher authority (one player) |
Each of these comes from a single player:
- Some Shipments sections show as under investigation until you reach the required years.
- A tattoo unlocks at five years of jail time, and the next authority rank also comes at five.
- You change your player name by visiting the tattoo artist in the jail.
Our ROB RUN Shipments guide covers the full unlock tree.
How do you get out of prison?
Check your server before you walk out. Several players say the choice happens inside the prison, in a room with a poster on the wall, where you can note the server number for a friend. One player warns that if the first exit puts you on a different server from your friends, you cannot play together. Another answers that you can return to prison and switch.
After that, one player says, you follow the yellow icon labelled exit to leave.
A single player guide also says that while locked up you can search the facility for interactive escape prompts, such as cell toilets and wall posters. That guide does not show an escape working, so treat it as unconfirmed.
ROB RUN Prison: Arrests, Surrender, Bribes and Jail Time: FAQ
What happens when you go to prison in ROB RUN?
After a city arrest the cop takes your bag, but players say your equipped kit, gun included, stays with you, and the jail stay is short. The alternative is a bribe, which only works if you parked money in the bank first. Surrender to Feds is a separate choice that gives up everything you hold for a sentence, which becomes jail time used for unlocks.
How do you surrender to the Feds in ROB RUN?
Surrender to Feds has two entry points: the Prison marker on the global map, and Settings, under Other. Players say it confiscates everything you hold at that moment and hands you a prison sentence in exchange.
How do you bribe a cop in ROB RUN?
Keep money in the bank. When a cop arrests you, you can offer a bribe, and if the cop accepts you keep your bag. Two players say the payment comes from laundered bank money. One player saw an offer of 10,000 during a single arrest, which is not a fixed price.
Do you keep your gun when you get arrested in ROB RUN?
Players say yes: an arrest takes the bag and leaves the equipped kit. Surrendering to a cop is disputed. The support center says equipped gear stays with you, while two players say surrendering loses everything.
How long do you stay in jail after an arrest in ROB RUN?
Not long, going by two players. One sat a minute and a half after a city arrest and another a minute and 15 seconds. Multi-year sentences from a wipe or Surrender to Feds count as jail time and are not waited out, one player says.
What is jail time used for in ROB RUN?
It works as progression. Players say years served open new tattoos and locked parts of the Shipments tree, and the support center lists accumulated jail time among the things that carry over at the wipe.
How do you get out of prison in ROB RUN?
One player says you follow the yellow icon marked exit. Before you go, pick a server from the list inside the prison, ideally the one your friends are on, so your party ends up together.