Tennessee Murder Convict On The Run After Stealing Marked Work Truck

A manhunt for a Tennessee murder convict entered its second day on Monday after officials confirmed he stole a marked work truck during his escape. Jacob Allen Morley, 28, is serving a life sentence for the 2022 killing of Cody Birchfield. Law enforcement agencies are searching for the 5-foot-11, 240-pound man, who has been added to the state's most wanted list.

Morley left the Northwest Correctional Complex in Tiptonville on Sunday night. Prison staff noticed he was missing around 11:30 p.m. and conducted an immediate emergency count. Security footage shows him cutting through a fence while wearing his prison clothes. By 1 a.m. on Monday, cameras on the 400 block of Keystone Drive, about two miles south of the facility, captured him taking a vehicle.

The stolen vehicle is a white 2008 Ford F-350 with Tennessee license plate 138BBQV. Officials note the truck is owned by Lindamood Planting Company and contains an air compressor in the bed. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation advises the public to treat Morley as dangerous.

Morley was convicted in 2025 of first-degree murder, burglary, vandalism, tampering with evidence, and evading arrest. His trial included testimony from his former girlfriend, Landree Sheperd. She stated that Morley told her at one point that he had killed Birchfield. The victim disappeared in early February 2022 after being last seen in Elizabethton.

Carter County Sheriff's Office investigators found signs of a violent crime inside Birchfield's home. Police arrested Morley on March 2, 2022, after a chase that reached the North Carolina border. Birchfield's body was later recovered from beneath Morley's house. Federal and state partners are now assisting the local search.

Residents with information about Morley's location can call 844-832-3463.