Franklin County investigators and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation are waiting to hear from doctors about a Hart County man’s mental status before determining whether to charge him in an incident that shut down Interstate 85 Monday afternoon.
“A driver walked away from his vehicle with a backpack on southbound I-85,” Franklin County Sheriff Steve Thomas said. “Deputies approached him and asked if they could help him. He stated, ‘there might be a bomb in my Jeep’.”
When deputies asked how he knew, the unnamed 41-year-old man replied, “they told me so”, according to Thomas.
In the interest of public safety, I-85 southbound was shut down from 3:30-5 p.m. Monday in the area of mile marker 166 (Ga. 106) in Carnesville.
“After interviewing the person of interest and according to his father his has had a traumatic brain injury,” Thomas said.
The individual was released into his father’s care Monday night.
At last report, no charges have been filed pending receipt of medical information.
Thomas acknowledged the help of a number of agencies, including Lavonia Police Department for redirecting traffic, Franklin County deputies, Franklin County 9-1-1 operators, Franklin County Emergency Medical Services, Habersham County Sheriff’s Office bomb detection K-9, Georgia State Patrol, Georgia Department of Public Safety Motor Carrier Compliance officers, GBI bomb agents, the Georgia Department of Transportation, and GDOT Champs workers.
