Police name man who lured firefighters into deadly gunfire that killed two

Wess Roley has been named as the suspect in the horrifying ambush shooting of Idaho firefighters, by officials who disclosed this information under anonymity due to not being authorised to comment publicly on the investigation.

At present, US police are not revealing details about 20-year-old Mr Roley or the motives behind his alleged heinous act.

In a drawn-out and shocking scene on Sunday, an assailant wielding a rifle started a wildfire to lure in emergency services, before opening fire on them in a northern Idaho town. Two firefighters were killed and one was seriously injured during the hours-long gunfight.

Local news agencies report that after igniting the blaze and shooting at police and firefighters, the suspect was found deceased with a gun close by, just as the fire was closing in on the officers at the scene.

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The discovery was made following the tracking of the suspect's mobile phone signal to the area where his body was located, reports the Mirror US.

"Right now, behind the scenes, there's a lot of work going on to really understand who this individual is and what motivated them to carry out this attack," CNN was informed by Shawn Turner, the former director of communications for US national intelligence, on Monday.

Investigators are delving into "whether or not there was some sort of tension; some sort of strife, conflict between local law enforcement and this individual," Turner further explained.

The mobile phone signal on Canfield Mountain drew the attention of authorities at the time it was believed the shooter was present. "We had a cell phone activation that was in the same spot since about 3:16 [p.m.], and that it was in the same area," Kootenai County Sheriff Bob Norris explained.

"And we honed in on that cellphone, and we saw that there was a male, appeared to be deceased, with a weapon nearby," Norris continued.

Sheriff's officials reported that crews responded to a fire at Canfield Mountain just north of Coeur d'Alene around 1.30pm Sunday, and gunshots were heard approximately half an hour later.

"We do believe that the suspect started the fire, and we do believe that it was an ambush and it was intentional," Norris stated at a Sunday night press conference. "These firefighters did not have a chance."

Three victims were taken to Kootenai Health, according to hospital spokesperson Kim Anderson. Two were pronounced dead upon arrival, and the third was receiving treatment for injuries, Anderson said.

The injured firefighter was "fighting for his life" after surgery and was in stable condition, Norris confirmed.

One of the firefighters was a member of the Coeur D'Alene Fire Department, while the other was from Kootenai County Fire and Rescue, Norris revealed at a press conference. Their names were not immediately disclosed.

The scene was utter chaos as the brush fire raged and firefighters dashed to the site, only to be met with a barrage of gunfire. First responders urgently broadcasted their need for backup over the radio: "Everybody's shot up here ... send law enforcement now," one dispatch revealed.

The sheriff praised federal agencies for providing sophisticated technology that was instrumental in tracking the mobile phone signal.

Norris underscored the contribution of aerial law enforcement units: "There are some helicopters that had some really good technology that were able to pinpoint where that cellphone activity was. So yeah, there were our federal partners assisting us in this situation."

These helicopters not only helped in pinpointing the alleged gunman but were also ready to engage any threats, Norris confirmed.

"We had helicopters that were up, and we had snipers in them. So, if they had an opportunity to take a shot, then we wanted them to take that shot," he disclosed.