Authorities in Boulder County have released the name of a 16-year-old hitchhiker accused of attacking and nearly killing a 71-year-old woman who gave the boy and two friends a ride Monday night.

Jeffrey Collins, who just turned 16 in June, is suspected of attempted first-degree murder and first-degree assault on an at-risk adult. He remains at-large.

The Boulder County Sheriff’s Office says it had to obtain a court order to release the teen’s name.

“The court is allowing for the release of the (boy’s) information because he is at large and considered dangerous,” the sheriff’s office said in a bulletin Wednesday. “Juvenile records are confidential, however, upon court order certain law enforcement records may be made public including identifying information.”

Investigators say Collins is likely to be charged as an adult when he is taken into custody.

The sheriff’s office said the victim suffered “massive injuries, including a significant head injury, multiple fractures and multiple lacerations.” She was last said to be at a hospital in an intensive care unit.

The ordeal began Monday when the woman picked up Collins and his friends near Ward as the trio tried to arrange for a ride home after a camping trip, investigators say. She offered to take them to her home in Lefthand Canyon while they tried to find transportation.

“The trio of hitchhikers were with the victim for several hours at her residence when (Collins) suggested that they assault the woman in order to steal her car,” the sheriff’s office said in a news release.

Collins’ companions rebuffed the idea, but a short time later he attacked her, unprovoked, according to the sheriff’s office. The companions ran to a neighboring home about a half-mile away to report the assault about 8 p.m.

Anyone with information on the whereabouts of Collins is asked to contact their local law enforcement agency. Tipsters can also remain anonymous and provide information to Northern Colorado Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or by visiting www.nococrimestoppers.com.