IDAHO, USA — Police have stated that Skylar Meade and Nicholas Umphenour, the two men accused of a fugitive escape and shooting at Saint Alphonsus in Ada County, coordinated the attack. Leaving questions about how the two were able to stage the ordeal while in prison.
In a press conference last week, Boise Police stated the two were incarcerated together and affiliated with the Aryan Knights prison gang.
KTVB spoke with Donald Leach, a prison securities consultant and former deputy director of a jail in Kentucky, about how the prison escape could have been planned from behind bars.
Leach said there are a couple of different ways the hospital escape could have been communicated and coordinated, possibly though the prison's telephone system - but there are a number of other ways he has seen inmates to try plan an escape.
"You have illegal contraband cell phones that could get into facility, that could be used to help facilitate something at this level," Leach said. "Or they could write in letters and use code in letters. That's not unusual."
The Idaho Department of Correction had three officers escorting Meade out of Saint Alphonsus, which Leach said is more officers than you would normally see during a medical transport.
"I'm sure [Meade] being a member of a gang, that gang rotates in and out of the system all the time. So, there's always some level of communication going on," Leach said. "But whether or not they had any active information about an escape attempt, or whether or not they were acting on the fact that this individual made a serious self-harm attempt that require they transport him out. The fact that they put the three officers with him would indicate to me that they took the threat seriously."
As KTVB previously reported, at approximately 2 a.m. on 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 Idaho Department of Correction (IDOC) Director Josh Tewalt. Two IDOC officers accompanied Meade in the ambulance with additional armed IDOC staff following behind.
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.
Three officers in total were injured. 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.
The two suspects then fled. Meade and Umphenour were later located and arrested in Twin Falls County following a short vehicle pursuit. Tonia Huber, 52, was also arrested on charges of eluding authorities and possession of a controlled substance. It is unclear what her connection is to the two men.
Meade and Umphenour were arraigned in an Ada County Courthouse on Mar. 25. A judge set both of their preliminary hearing trials for April 8 at 8:30 a.m.
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