A man convicted of murdering a young Tennessee man has broken out of prison, stolen a truck, and triggered a manhunt now stretching across Tennessee, Missouri and North Carolina.
Jacob Allen Morley escaped from the Northwest Correctional Complex in Tiptonville, Tennessee, on Sunday. Prison staff noticed he was missing around 11:30 p.m., and surveillance footage later showed him breaching the facility’s perimeter fence.
Around 1 a.m. Monday, cameras caught Morley stealing a pickup truck from the 400 block of Keystone Drive, about two miles south of the prison, according to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation. The stolen vehicle is a white 2008 Ford F-350 with Tennessee plate 138BBQV, marked on the side with “Lindamood Planting Company.”
Morley was sentenced to life in prison after a 2025 conviction for the murder of Cody Birchfield, who was killed three years earlier. He was also convicted of burglary, vandalism, tampering with evidence and evading arrest.
Birchfield disappeared in early February 2022 after last being seen in Elizabethton, Tennessee. Investigators with the Carter County Sheriff’s Office found signs that a “violent crime” had taken place inside his house. On March 2, 2022, Morley was arrested following a police chase that ran to the North Carolina state line. After his arrest, Birchfield’s body was discovered underneath Morley’s home. Morley’s former girlfriend, Landree Sheperd, testified at trial that he had said “he f—ing killed him.”
Diana Reid, a close childhood friend of Birchfield, says she fears Morley will hurt someone else now that he’s free.
“He’s already been convicted of taking an innocent life. I believe he’s extremely dangerous and I’m genuinely concerned that someone else could end up hurt if he’s not caught soon,” Reid said. “I’m genuinely scared knowing that someone convicted of such a violent crime is out there, not knowing where he’s headed. What he’s capable of doing next is just frightening.”
“He’s got absolutely nothing to lose at this point and someone could become a victim just so he can continue his path to wherever he’s headed,” she said.
Reid described Birchfield as “such a kind soul” who “had the biggest heart.”
“He was more than just a murder victim, that he was someone who was deeply loved. He had a whole life ahead of him and he was completely robbed of that when he was murdered,” Reid said.
The search has now crossed state lines. The Missouri State Highway Patrol has urged residents to stay alert and check their surveillance cameras for any sign of Morley. Federal and state law enforcement are assisting in the search, according to officials.
Morley is described as 5 feet 11 inches tall, 240 pounds, with brown hair and green eyes. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation says he should be “considered dangerous” and has placed him on the state’s most wanted list.
Anyone with information on Morley’s whereabouts is asked to call 844-832-3463.
