Missouri Troopers Recapture Convicted Murderer Jacob Morley, Who Escaped a Tennessee Prison on Oct. 25, With Help From License Plate Cameras
Fox News reports the 28-year-old, serving life for murder, was arrested without incident near Kansas City about two hours after a tip that he might be on I-70. Federal and local agencies helped.
A convicted murderer who broke out of a Tennessee prison more than a week ago is back in custody, Fox News reports.
The capture. The Missouri State Highway Patrol told Fox News Digital that troopers arrested Jacob Allen Morley on Tuesday. The Patrol says the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation passed along at about 9:30 a.m. that Morley might be heading west on Interstate 70 near Independence. The Patrol says it found the stolen truck using FLOCK cameras, and undercover officers spotted it southbound on Missouri 291 in Liberty. As troopers closed in, he tried to veer off the road and got stuck. He was arrested without further incident about two hours after police first learned of his possible location.
Who helped. The Patrol lists the Kansas City and Independence police departments, the Career Criminal Task Force, Homeland Security Investigations and the U.S. Marshals Service. Tennessee authorities publicly thanked the public and the Missouri Highway Patrol.
The escape. Morley broke out of the Northwest Correctional Complex in Tiptonville, Tennessee, on Oct. 25. Fox says staff noticed him missing at about 11:30 p.m., and surveillance footage showed him crossing the perimeter fence. He allegedly stole a truck, which was later found abandoned in Marion, Illinois.
The crime. Fox says Morley was arrested in 2022 in connection with the killing of Cody Birchfield, whose body police found under Morley's home. He was convicted of first-degree murder in 2025, along with burglary, tampering with evidence, evading arrest and vandalism, and is serving a life sentence. He is 28.
What we could not check. Fox labels its story breaking news and we have only its account and the Patrol's quoted statement. An earlier Fox video caption said investigators were looking at a possible link between Morley and an armed bank robbery in Deerfield, Wisconsin. That has not been confirmed, and we have no further details on it.