Man accused of driving though fence at South Carolina nuclear plant and trying to hit a guard has been arrested, authorities say

By Paradise Afshar, CNN

(CNN) — A man accused of driving through a fence at a South Carolina nuclear power station and trying to hit a security officer with his vehicle this week was arrested Friday evening, a sheriff’s office said.

Doyle Wayne Whisenhunt, 66, of Lockesburg, Arkansas, has been charged in connection with Thursday night’s incident at the Oconee Nuclear Station, the Oconee County Sheriff’s Office said.

Whisenhunt was taken into custody Friday at an abandoned home in South Carolina’s Pickens County, the sheriff’s office said.

Whisenhunt is accused of accelerating his Toyota Camry toward a security officer on the station’s grounds “in an attempt to cause great bodily harm or death” on Thursday, the sheriff’s office said, citing an arrest warrant.

The Arkansas man also used his car to strike gates and fencing outside of the secured area of the plant, damaging them, the sheriff’s office said Friday. The office earlier said the car had driven through a fence.

Whisenhunt was not authorized to be on the property, the sheriff’s office said. Authorities have not released details about a motive.

Whisenhunt is charged with attempted murder, malicious injury to personal property and unlawful entry into an enclosed place.

Whisenhunt also faces a hit-and-run charge stemming from a car crash near the plant on the same day, the sheriff’s office said.

CNN’s attempts to determine whether Whisenhunt had an attorney weren’t immediately successful.

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