White supremacist who sparked massive manhunt after escaping Idaho hospital is jailed for life

Skylar Meade and his accomplice were both members of the Aryan Knights, police said

Skylar Meade, an Idaho inmate who sparked a huge police manhunt after he was sprung from custody in an ambush at a hospital in March, has been sentenced to life in prison.

Meade’s sentence is a fixed term of 30 years. He has been ordered to serve another 35 years concurrently on other charges, according to Idaho News 6. At the time of his escape, Meade, 31, was serving a 20-year prison sentence for shooting a sheriff in a high-speed car chase.

He was able to break loose from prison officials while at the Saint Alphonsus Regional Medical Center. He was seeking medical treatment and had been taken to the hospital around 9.35pm on March 19 after he engaged in “self-injurious behavior”, The Associated Press reported.

Under state procedure, unarmed guards stand at each side of a high-risk prisoner while an armed guard follows them. Officials did not elaborate on additional security measures that were taken and it is not clear if Meade was walking on his own or restrained in any way.

Nicholas Umphenour, left, and Skylar Meade, right. Meade was sentenced to life in prison following his brief escape in March. Umphenour allegedly assisted in the prison escape (AP)

The attack occurred when officials were gearing up to transfer Meade back to prison. Around 2.15am an armed accomplice, said to be Nicholas Umphenour, launched an attack. Both Meade and Umphenour have links to the white supremacist gang Aryan Knights.

Meade has two face tattoos, including the numbers 1 and 11, which are thought to represent A and K, the first and 11th letters of the alphabet, which supposedly stands for Aryan Knights.

Three prison officers were shot in the ensuing gunfight and the two men were able to escape in a four-door sedan, later identified as a grey Honda Accord. The men were caught and arrested in Twin Falls on March 21 after a short car chase. No shots were fired and no extensive use of force was used during the arrests.

Meade later plead guilty to the charges associated with his escape, including possession of a controlled substance, unlawful possession, introduction or removal of contraband and persistent violator charges relating to the escape.

Umphenour was charged with three counts of assault or battery upon certain personnel, escape by one charged or convicted for a felony, unlawful possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and persistent violator and use of a deadly weapon enhancements. 

The officers involved survived the attack.

Online court records show Umphenour’s trial is scheduled for October.

Meade and Umphenour are suspects in the murder of 83-year-old James L Mauney of Juliaetta, Idaho, which police say took place during his escape. That case remains under investigation. Police think the men may have been involved in the death of 72-year-old Gerald “Don” Henderson near Orofino.

Police said they found Meade’s handcuffs at the scene of one of the murders. Officials separately found the car Meade used in his escape in northern Idaho. The pair then fled that area in a different car.

A third person, Tia Garcia, is charged with helping the men while on the run.