BOISE, Idaho — (UPDATE: Police say both Meade and Umphenour have been located and taken into custody in Twin Falls, Idaho Thursday afternoon.)
Boise Police Department (BPD) is searching for two suspects involved in the coordinated escape of a prison inmate at Saint Alphonsus Regional Medical Center in Boise Wednesday, resulting in three law enforcement officers being shot and injured, according to police.
One suspect is the escaped inmate, Skylar Meade, the other is Nicholas "Moose" Umphenour, whom police suspect shot Idaho Department of Correction (IDOC) officers and acted as an accomplice in the escape of the IDOC inmate, according to BPD.
Meade and Umphenour are considered to be armed and dangerous. An arrest warrant has been issued for Meade and Umphenour. If you see them, do not approach them and immediately call police at 911 or Ada County Dispatch at 208-377-6790.
Meade is described as being 5-foot-6 and 150 pounds. He has tattoos on his face; one side is the number one and the other side is the number eleven, representing the first and eleventh letters of the alphabet: A and K for the Aryan Knights gang he is affiliated with, according to officials. Photos released by police also showed an A and K tattooed on his abdomen.
Umphenour is described as being 5-foot-11, weighing approximately 160 pounds. BPD said he has brown hair and hazel eyes. Detectives later confirmed that Umphenour is a known associate of Meade's.
The suspects were last seen traveling in a gray 2020 Honda Civic with Idaho license plate 2TDF43U, according to police.
"We believe that this was a coordinated attack, ambush on Department of Correction officers," Boise Police Department Chief Ron Winegar said of the escape. "Certainly a planned endeavor to free him from custody."
At approximately 2 a.m. Wednesday, March 20, Meade was transported by ambulance to Saint Alphonsus to receive medical treatment for self-inflicted wounds to his face and body, according to IDOC Director Josh Tewalt. Two IDOC officers accompanied Meade in the ambulance with additional armed IDOC staff following behind.
When asked by KTVB if Meade deliberately injured himself as part of a plan to get out of the correctional facility, an IDOC representative responded, "At this point in the investigation, that appears to be accurate."
After Meade was treated, IDOC staff were preparing to transport him back to the prison when an unknown suspect, later identified as Nicholas Umphenour, fired gunshots at officers hitting two of them, BPD said.
BPD officers responded to Saint Alphonsus after receiving reports of an active shooter. According to police, one officer fired their weapon at an armed man he saw at the scene. That individual was later identified as an IDOC employee. He was not seriously injured. IDOC said their officers were in uniform at the time of the shooting.
Three officers in total were injured, according to police. Officials said one officer is in critical but stable condition, another sustained serious, but non-life-threatening injuries, and the third officer that was allegedly struck by a BPD officer received care for the non-life-threatening injuries, BPD said.
KTVB also inquired if Meade was in restraints at the time of the attack and/or when he fled, to which Kuzeta-Cerimagic said, "To the best of our knowledge, he was in restraints while being escorted out of the hospital. Once the investigation is complete, we will have opportunities to evaluate policies and practices, but our initial review shows that our staff followed our policies and procedures."
Meade was being held in administrative segregation - or solitary confinement - at Idaho Maximum Security Institution in Kuna, because officials deemed him a threat to fellow inmates and a severe security risk, according to Tewalt.
Meade was sentenced to 20 years in prison in 2017 for aggravated battery on a law enforcement officer with a firearm enhancement. He was found guilty of shooting at a Twin Falls sheriff's sergeant during a high-speed chase.
Prior convictions include felony possession of a controlled substance, grand theft and introduction of contraband to a correctional facility.
Idaho State Police issued a Blue Alert following the incident, as the search remains active. Blue Alerts are issued when police are looking for a suspect or suspects involved the death or serious injury of a peace officer.
Deputies from the Valley County Sheriff's Office (VCSO) were dispatched Wednesday morning to assist neighboring agencies in a possible sighting in Idaho County of the suspects, according to a Facebook post by VCSO at 3:15 p.m. Wednesday. The tip did not produce any leads as to the suspects' whereabouts. Officers have since returned to their jurisdiction.
The hospital was placed on a temporary modified lockdown, but the scene has since been secured and operations are back to normal. In a statement from Saint Alphonsus, they stated the incident happened in the ambulance bay of the hospital. They said that all staff and patients are safe.
The Critical Incident Taskforce (CITF) is investigating the incident, among various local and regional law enforcement agencies.
Anyone with information is asked to call 911 or Ada County Dispatch at 208-377-6790.
Watch the full news conference hosted by Boise Police Department and Idaho Department of Correction below:
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