( CNN ) -- A Texas inmate in a wheelchair , who escaped on foot from two armed guards as he was being transferred between prisons , is now on the U.S . Marshals ' list of the 15 most-wanted fugitives . Arcade Comeaux Jr. , 49 , `` produced a weapon and fired upon two correctional officers , took them hostage and forced them to drive to Baytown , Texas , '' the U.S . Marshals Service said in a statement . He then put the officers in the back of the van and took their weapons and one of their uniforms , the statement said . Comeaux was serving three life sentences for aggravated sexual assault and two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon . He escaped Monday during transport from Huntsville , Texas , to Stiles , Texas . The 6-foot , 200-pound man was shackled and in a wheelchair , `` which he had claimed was needed for mobility , '' Michelle Lyons , director of public information for the Texas Department of Criminal Justice in Huntsville , said in a statement . About 45 minutes into the trip , as they were driving through Conroe , 40 minutes north of Houston , the prisoner pulled out a pistol and ordered the guards to drive south to Baytown , east of Houston . He fired once , but hit no one during the escape about 9 a.m. , officials said . Law enforcement officers found the unharmed officers an hour later . Comeaux was being transferred so he could be near John Sealy Hospital in Galveston for treatment of the supposed paralysis he had suffered during a reported stroke , officials said . At least $ 16,000 in reward money has been offered for information leading to Comeaux 's rearrest and a task force of more than 100 investigators is searching for him , focusing on the Houston area , where he grew up and has family . His escape has led the man who oversees Texas ' criminal justice system to call for a shakeup of the prison system . `` I just think enough 's enough , '' said Sen. John Whitmire , the Texas Democrat from Houston who is chairman of the state Senate 's Criminal Justice Committee . `` We need a complete shakeup of the leadership of our prison system and/or an outside review by third parties , '' he told CNN by phone Wednesday . `` We just ca n't have security breaches of this nature . '' Whitmire said the guards had failed to pat down Comeaux while he was in his wheelchair and before they began the trip . `` Sure enough , he has a firearm , '' he said . `` The question is , are there others ( in the prison system ) ? I think you have to assume that there are until you find out differently . '' So far this year , more than 900 cell phones have been confiscated from the 112 locations that house the state 's 158,000 prisoners . `` It 's pretty rampant , '' he said . `` I want the director to come forward and tell us what it 's going to take '' to solve the problem , he said . John Moriarty , inspector general of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice , said such lapses are highly unusual in the state 's penal system . `` We have no open gun investigations other than this one , '' he said . `` The last one was several years ago . '' Texas Department of Criminal Justice Executive Director Brad Livingston , who has been in the job since 2005 , did not immediately respond to a call seeking comment .
Arcade Comeaux Jr. was in wheelchair when he pulled gun on officers . Comeaux forced officers to drive him to Baytown , Texas , where he fled on foot . State senator calls for shakeup in state 's penal system .