A Kentucky teen is behind bars after he attempted to poison his mother, police said.

Justin Adkins, 18, is accused of pouring bleach into his mom’s drink Sunday at their Lick Creek home, news station WTVQ reported.

The woman told authorities that she could smell the chemical product in the beverage and believed her son was trying to poison her.

Adkins told officers that he put “only a little bit” of bleach in the drink. He claimed that he wanted his mother to “get sick, but he did not want her to die,” according to the police report.

Authorities placed Adkins under arrest on charges of wanton endangerment and assault. He was booked and released from Pike County Detention Center, according to court records.