Man Arrested After Admitting to Breaking Out Statehouse Windows

COLUMBIA, SC (WOLO)-A man has been arrested and charged after admitting to breaking out several windows on Statehouse grounds on Sunday.

Ernest Rodney Thompson, 46, was arrested by Bureau of Protective Services officers on Statehouse grounds around 4 a.m. Sunday.

According to a spokesperson for the Department of Public Safety, two BPS officers were on routine patrol when they encountered Thompson coming down the South steps of the Statehouse.

Officers say Thompson was speaking loudly to the officers and began walking toward them with a 2X4 piece of wood in his hand, however he was compliant and placed in handcuffs.

Thompson admitted to breaking out the windows of the Eastside of the Statehouse grounds, which is the entrance to the lieutenant governor’s office. He also reportedly admitted to breaking out windows on vehicles along Main Street.

Thompson was arrested and charged with damage to state property. He was transported to Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center in Columbia.

The Eastside steps will remain cordoned off and closed to visitors throughout Sunday.