Devendra Kumar
On a night when medical help is usually sought, a violent and brazen attack unfolded in the emergency department of Saint Alphonsus Regional Medical Centre in Boise, Idaho. At 2:15 a.m., prison officials were transporting Skylar Meade, a 31-year-old white supremacist gang member, back from a hospital stay when Meade, a severe security risk, shot and wounded two prison officers. Meade’s associate, Nicholas Umphenour, 5’11” with brown hair and hazel eyes, was identified as a suspect in the shooting.
According to police, Meade shot the two officers as they were returning him to prison, and then fled the scene in a grey 2020 Honda Civic with Umphenour, who drove off with Meade after the shooting. The identities and conditions of the injured officers were not disclosed, but one was reportedly in critical but stable condition, while the other had serious but non-life-threatening injuries.
The attack has been described as a brazen attempt to facilitate Meade’s escape, as he was being taken back to prison after engaging in “self-injurious behaviour” and requiring emergency medical care. Meade had been serving 20 years in prison since his 2017 conviction for shooting at a sheriff’s sergeant during a high-speed chase.
The Aryan Knights gang, to which Meade is affiliated, is a white supremacist prison gang known for its criminal activities, including drug trafficking and violence. The gang was formed in the mid-1990s in Idaho’s prison system and has been described by federal prosecutors as a “scourge” within the state’s prison system.
As authorities continue to investigate, a warrant with a $2 million bond has been issued for Umphenour’s arrest on charges of aggravated battery against law enforcement and aiding and abetting an escape. The police are urging anyone with information on the whereabouts of Umphenour and Meade to come forward.
In a statement, Boise Police Chief Ron Winegar said, “This brazen, violent, and apparently coordinated attack on Idaho Department of Corrections personnel, to facilitate an escape of a dangerous inmate, was carried out right in front of the Emergency Department, where people come for medical help, often in the direst circumstances.”