Idaho inmate escapes after planned breakout from hospital, 2 officers shot in 'brazen' ambush

Police are searching for an escaped inmate and another person after corrections officers in Boise, Idaho, were shot early Wednesday in what officials described as a planned escape.

The incident began at 2:15 a.m. local time when state Corrections Department officers were attempting to transfer inmate Skylar Meade back to the corrections facility, according to Boise police. Meade had been taken to Saint Alphonsus Regional Medical Center for treatment.

As the officers were preparing to take Meade back, a suspect later identified as Nicholas Umphenour fired at them, police said. Two of the officers were shot, one with non-life-threatening injuries, while the other was stable in critical condition.

Meade and the other person fled and were last seen in a gray four-door sedan, possibly a Honda Civic, police said. Meade was described as a 31-year-old white man, 5 feet, 6 inches tall, with two face tattoos: the No. 1 on one side and 11 on the other.

Boise officers responded to reports of an active shooter at the hospital, which was placed on a modified lockdown, the department said. One of the officers fired at an armed person at the hospital entrance, who was later identified as a Corrections Department officer.

The corrections officer sustained non-life-threatening injuries.

Boise Police Chief Ron Winegar described the incident as a “brazen, violent and apparently coordinated attack” to facilitate Meade’s escape.

“We caution anyone who may have contact with the suspects involved in this violent attack and escape to call 911 immediately and not confront them personally," Winegar said. "They are armed, dangerous and have shown they are willing to use extreme violence in furtherance of their criminal activity."

The FBI is also assisting Boise and state police, a spokesperson said.

Winegar told reporters Wednesday that Meade is a "known gang member." Umphenour is an associate of Meade, Boise police said.

"It is unknown exactly where they are or where they are headed," police said in a statement Wednesday evening.

Meade was sentenced to 20 years in prison in 2017 for firing several shots at law enforcement officers during a high-speed chase while fleeing a traffic stop, according to NBC affiliate KTVB of Boise. He pleaded guilty to aggravated assault, methamphetamine possession, unlawful possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and possession of a shank in jail.

Josh Tewalt, director of the Corrections Department, said Meade engaged in “injurious behavior” Tuesday night while in a maximum-security facility. Medical staff members at the department determined he would need to be treated at a hospital, and he arrived at the hospital just before 10 p.m. local time.

“As the chief adequately and appropriately described, this is what we believe to be a planned attack,” Tewalt said. “But in the event that it was not isolated, we took every precaution we possibly could. ... The entire south Boise complex was placed on secure status.”

The Corrections Department has also launched an investigation to learn how the incident happened and whether any information about Meade's whereabouts can be discovered.

Tewalt was not aware whether Saint Alphonsus was regularly used to transfer inmates, but he noted it could vary depending on emergency room capacity by hospital.

Meade was in administrative segregation, a form of restrictive housing that is the highest custody level at the Corrections Department, Tewalt said.

"That's not a determination by your criminal history," Tewalt said. "It's a classification that's earned by your behavior in custody."

Meade and Umphenour are considered armed and dangerous, and anyone who sees them should not approach but should call 911, police said.

Police have obtained a warrant for Umphenour on two counts of aggravated battery against law enforcement and one count of aiding and abetting an escape.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com