Person of interest sought in nuke property incident

Mike Crenshaw, the Oconee Sheriff, identified a person of interest in the investigation of an intrusion on nuclear plant property last night and later at a home in rural Pickens County.  Meantime, the car the man was driving has been found apparently abandoned in Six Mile and it is being processed for evidence. The car, Crenshaw says, is not registered to the individual who drove it.  Crenshaw this afternoon announced the person of interest is a 66-year old Lockesburg, Arkansas resident, Doyle Wayne Whisehunt, who, Crenshaw says, is wanted in his home state on drug and weapons charges.  Authorities believe Whisenhunt entered Oconee Nuclear property twice last night and, each time, was met by security guards working for Duke Energy.  After being turned away a second time from plant property, the car and its driver were followed to a home in adjoining Pickens County on rural Jones Mill Road where, according to Crenshaw, a homeowner fired warning shots at the individual and car that pulled into his drive at nighttime.  Although the intruder got no closer than some 500 yards to what’s considered the highly restricted section of the plant, what happened has caused concern from elsewhere.  After this afternoon’s news conference, Crenshaw said he field a call from Israel as well as one from U-S national security officials and was told the president would likely want to be briefed on what happened.  It’s possible, Crenshaw also said, that last night’s intruder could face charges such as trespassing, malicious damage to property and, possibly he said, the charge of attempted murder — a reference to the intruder’s car striking a plant security vehicle with a guard inside.