South Carolina authorities have arrested a 66-year-old man they say drove through the gate of a nuclear plant in Oconee County and attempted to run down security officers earlier this week.
Doyle Wayne Whisenhunt, of Lockesburg, Ark., was taken into custody Friday night at an abandoned home in Pickens County, S.C. He was then transported to the Oconee County Detention Center and booked into jail, the sheriff’s office said in a news release.
Whisenhunt —who’s also wanted in Arkansas on drug and weapons charges — was charged with one count each of attempted murder, malicious injury to personal property, and unlawful entry into an enclosed place related to an incident that happened just after 8 p.m. Thursday at the Oconee Nuclear Station.
Early on Friday, sheriff’s spokesman Jimmy Watt said the driver of a silver 2002 Toyota Camry had driven through the exit of the nuclear plant but it was stopped by pop-up barricades activated by security officers.
He then backed the vehicle up in an attempt to flee, but his car was blocked by Duke Energy security. Whisenhunt was later identified as a person of interest in the case.
According to an arrest warrant, Whisenhunt accelerated his vehicle in an attempt to cause great bodily harm or death. He also caused damage to the gates and fencing of the plant, and trespassed onto the property without authorization.
In a separate incident that also happened Friday, Whisenhunt was charged with one count of hit and run. Authorities say the suspect was involved in a car crash on Rochester Highway but failed to remain on the scene.
About an hour before Thursday’s incident, the same man, driving the same car, showed up at the Oconee Nuclear Station, but drove off “after being asked to leave,” a sheriff’s spokesperson said.
Whisenhunt’s car was recovered Friday afternoon in Pickens County, authorities said.
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