Fugitive in white F-350 on Tennessee most wanted list after prison escape
Jacob Morley, 28, stole a work truck two miles from Tiptonville prison and is now listed as dangerous by state investigators.
By Josephine Clarke ·
Tennessee authorities placed a 28-year-old murder convict on the state’s most wanted list after he escaped a prison facility and stole a work truck on Sunday night. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation identified Jacob Allen Morley as the fugitive and described him as dangerous. The manhunt began after staff at the Northwest Correctional Complex in Tiptonville discovered Morley missing during an emergency count at approximately 11:30 p.m. Sunday.
Security footage captured Morley cutting through a fence while wearing standard prison clothing. He was sentenced to life in prison in 2025 for the 2022 murder of Cody Birchfield. Morley also received guilty verdicts for burglary, vandalism, tampering with evidence, and evading arrest.
Around 1:00 a.m. Monday, video from the 400 block of Keystone Drive showed Morley stealing a vehicle roughly two miles south of the prison. The Tennessee Department of Correction identified the truck as a white 2008 Ford F-350 bearing the Tennessee license plate 138BBQV. The vehicle displays the name Lindamood Planting Company on its side and carries an air compressor in the bed.
Officials described Morley as standing 5 feet 11 inches tall and weighing 240 pounds. He has brown hair and green eyes. Federal and state law enforcement agencies are assisting in the search for the inmate.
Morley’s conviction stemmed from the disappearance of Cody Birchfield in early February 2022. Birchfield was last seen in Elizabethton, Tennessee. Investigators from the Carter County Sheriff’s Office found signs of a violent crime inside his home. Police arrested Morley on March 2, 2022, after a chase that reached the North Carolina state line. Authorities subsequently located Birchfield’s body beneath Morley’s residence.
Landree Sheperd, Morley’s former girlfriend, testified during the trial that Morley stated he had killed Birchfield. The Tennessee Department of Correction released a statement confirming the escape and the details of the stolen vehicle. Residents with information about Morley’s location can call 844-832-3463.
Source: Fox News
