A convicted murderer who escaped from a Tennessee prison more than a week ago was captured in Missouri on Tuesday after a multistate search involving several law enforcement agencies.
Jacob Allen Morley, 28, was taken into custody at approximately 11:34 a.m. in Carroll County, Missouri, according to the Missouri State Highway Patrol (MSHP). He was serving a life sentence for first-degree murder after escaping from the Northwest Correctional Complex in Tiptonville, Tennessee.
The search intensified Tuesday morning after the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation alerted Missouri authorities that Morley might be traveling westbound on Interstate 70 near Independence. Investigators used FLOCK license plate cameras to locate the suspect vehicle, while undercover officers later spotted it traveling south on Missouri 291 in Liberty.
The Kansas City Police Department also tracked the vehicle using a helicopter as officers from multiple agencies coordinated their response. Officials believed Morley was armed with multiple weapons.
The vehicle eventually traveled east along Missouri 210 and Missouri 10 before turning onto County Road 515 in Carroll County. The driver attempted to leave the roadway but became stuck. A Missouri state trooper then confronted Morley and took him into custody without incident.
The highway patrol said no agencies were involved in an active pursuit with emergency equipment activated during the investigation.
Morley escaped from the prison in late October after breaching a perimeter fence, according to the Tennessee Department of Correction. Surveillance footage showed him leaving the facility in his prison uniform and allegedly stealing a white Ford F-350 pickup truck.
The truck was later found abandoned behind a business in Marion, Illinois, on Oct. 27.
Morley was convicted in 2025 of murdering his former co-worker, 34-year-old Cody Birchfield, in a 2022 killing. He was also found guilty of abuse of a corpse, tampering with evidence and aggravated burglary. Birchfield’s body was discovered inside a large metal box beneath Morley’s residence in northeast Tennessee.
The Missouri State Highway Patrol credited the Kansas City Police Department, Independence Police Department, Career Criminal Task Force, Homeland Security Investigations and the U.S. Marshals Service for assisting in the capture.
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) thanked the public for providing tips that helped bring the search to an end.