An American fugitive and his Thai wife were caught by police on Wednesday (November 6), two days after they escaped from a court building. The couple, who had gunshot wounds to their heads, were found just 35km from the Cambodia border.

The Bonnie and Clyde couple Bart Allen Helmus, 39, and Sirinapha Wisetrit, 31, appear to have tried to kill themselves after police surrounded them in Sa Kaeo province.

Helmus was alive but unresponsive while his wife was conscious. The pair were carried into a police truck and rushed to hospital.

A third prisoner who escaped with them, Noi Ton Nintet, 41, was captured in a nearby field in his underpants.

Officers said the trio had been facing the maximum penalty of the death sentence for trafficking drugs when they escaped before their trial.

They now face additional charges of attempted murder of a policeman, escaping while being in custody, threatening others with guns, illegal possession of firearm and ammunition, carrying a gun in public without reason and shooting in public without reason.

Police Lieutenant Colonel Hiran Burana, Assistant National Police Commissioner, confirmed that the suspects had been caught and a second getaway car had also been recovered.

He added: ''All three will be questioned when they are stable. Any accomplices who helped them escape will also be caught and punished.''

Lieutenant General, Jitti Sonthi, Commander of Sa Kaeo Provincial Police said the fugitives had been caught in a sugarcane field.

He added: ''One man had a gunshot wound and was unconscious and a woman was alive and able to walk. We think they could have been hiding in the forest for two days and two nights.''

The couple initially escaped following a gunfight in which one officer was allegedly shot at and suffered a stab wound. The trio then fled into a waiting bronze Isuzu pickup truck.

The injured policeman, Captain Thanameth Potiphan, was rushed to hospital in a critical condition.

Police described the fugitives as ''extremely dangerous'' and set up checkpoints and roadblocks in the area.

Police initially arrested the couple in July this year after raiding their apartment where they allegedly found 1kg of crystal methamphetamine, a pistol with 200 bullets, scales, plastic bags and 205,000 Baht (6650 USD).

Helmus allegedly ordered the drugs from the 'dark web' before selling them to customers around the Thai 'Sin City' resort.

An American fugitive and his Thai wife who escaped prison were caught this afternoon just 35km from the Cambodia border - both of them with gun shot wounds in their heads.

The Bonnie and Clyde couple Bart Allen Helmus, 39, and Sirinapha Wisetrit, 31, appear to have tried to kill themselves after cops surrounded them in Sa Kaeo province after two nights on the run.

Helmus was alive but unresponsive with a gunshot wound in his head from a handgun while his wife also had a wound but was conscious.

The pair were carried into a police truck and rushed to hospital. They will now face charges for escaping from a holding cell at a courtroom in Pattaya, Thailand, on Monday afternoon following a gunfight in which an officer was stabbed.

A third prisoner who escaped with them, Noi Ton Nintet, 41, was captured in a nearby field in his underpants.

Officers said the trio had been facing the maximum penalty of the death sentence for trafficking drugs when they fled before a trial.

They now face additional charges of attempted murder of a policeman, escaping while being in custody, threatening others with guns, illegal possession of firearm and ammunition, carrying a gun in public without reason and shooting in public without reason.

Police Lieutenant Colonel Hiran Burana, Assistant National Police Commissioner, confirmed that the suspects had been caught and a a second getaway car that they switched to had also been recovered.

He added: ''All three will be questioned when they are stable. Any accomplices who helped them escape will also we caught and punished.''

Lieutenant General, Jitti Sonthi, Commander of Sa Kaeo Provincial Police said the fugitives had been caught in a sugarcane field.

He added: ''One man had a gun shot wound and was unconscious and a woman was alive and able to walk. We think they could have been hiding in the forest for two days and two nights.''

The couple initially escaped following a gunfight in which one officer was allegedly fired at and suffered a stab wound in the fracas. The trio then fled into a waiting bronze Isuzu pickup truck.
The injured policeman, Captain Thanameth Potiphan, was rushed to hospital in a critical condition.
Police described the fugitives as ''extremely dangerous'' and set up checkpoints and roadblocks in the area.

Police initially arrested the couple in July this year after raiding their apartment where they allegedly found 1kg of crystal methamphetamine, a pistol with 200 bullets, scales, plastic bags and 205,000 Baht (6650 USD).

Helmus allegedly ordered the drugs from the 'dark web' before selling them to customers around the Thai 'Sin City' resort.