What did Skylar Meade do? Manhunt underway as Idaho inmate escapes prison in blaze of gunfire injuring three officers

Skylar Meade, a prison inmate being transported from a Boise hospital, and his accomplice are on the run following an attack on Wednesday, March 20, 2024. Meade's accomplice is Nicholas Umphenour, a white supremacist Idaho prison gang member. While they were taking Meade back to prison, three corrections officers were ambushed and shot, triggering a massive manhunt, which is ongoing.

The attack occurred in the ambulance bay at Saint Alphonsus Regional Medical Center, where Meade was being treated. As the Idaho Department of Correction officers were preparing to leave with Meade around 2:15 am local time, an unknown assailant attacked and opened fire, injuring two officers. During the altercation, a responding Boise police officer also shot a third person, later determined to be another corrections officer.

Police soon identified the shooter as Nicholas Umphenour. They issued a warrant with a $2 million bond for his arrest on charges of aggravated battery against law enforcement and aiding and abetting an escape.

The search is ongoing for both Umphenour and Meade, who fled the hospital in a gray 2020 Honda Civic with Idaho plates. However, their current whereabouts and destination remain unknown.

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Skylar Meade linked to ambush and suspect identified as Nicholas Umphenour

Boise police detectives have identified Nicholas Umphenour as the suspect in the shooting involving Skylar Meade. According to a news release, Meade and the suspect fled the area in a grey four-door sedan just before Boise Police officers arrived on the scene.

Officials reported that one officer shot by Umphenour is in critical but stable condition, while another has serious but non-life-threatening injuries. A third officer injured by police gunfire sustained non-life-threatening injuries as well.

Boise Police Chief Ron Winegar described the incident as a "coordinated attack or ambush" aimed at freeing Meade from custody.

The hospital was placed on lockdown as police searched for the suspects, and a manhunt is now underway across the Treasure Valley. The police are working to locate Umphenour and the 31-year-old Skylar Meade, who has a history of prior convictions. Meade is also a documented member of the white supremacist gang, the Aryan Knights.

Skylar Meade has been incarcerated since October 2016 for aggravated battery of a law enforcement officer with a firearm enhancement. He had his most recent sentence scheduled to end in 2036, as stated in a news release.

Meade reportedly engaged in "self-injurious" behavior on Tuesday night. This prompted officers to transfer him off-site for care, according to Josh Tewalt, director of the state's Department of Correction.

Skylar Meade, distinguished by distinctive tattoos on his face and body, stands approximately 5 feet 6 inches tall and weighs 150 lbs, according to officials.

Nicholas Umphenour, standing at 5-foot-11 and weighing approximately 160 pounds, has brown hair and hazel eyes. A warrant for his arrest has been issued, with bail set at $2 million. The hospital also lifted the temporary lockdown that was put in place after the shooting, confirmed by BPD.

Boise Police Chief Ron Winegar said in a statement that the "brazen, violent, and apparently coordinated attack" facilitated the escape of a dangerous inmate. He added that it was carried out in front of the emergency where people go for "medical help, often in the direst circumstances.”

Skylar Meade was held in administrative segregation at Idaho Maximum Security Institution in Kuna, approximately 12 miles south of Boise, as he was deemed a severe security risk, as confirmed by Tewalt.