Tennessee fugitive caught after truck sinks into Missouri mud

The ten-day manhunt for a Tennessee murder fugitive ended at noon on Tuesday when his truck sank into the mud of a rural road in Missouri.

Jacob Morley, 28, was taken into custody by a Missouri State Highway Patrol trooper in Carroll County, a small jurisdiction in the state's northwest corner. Morley had been serving a life sentence for the 2022 killing of a co-worker. Authorities stated he was compliant during the arrest.

The pursuit began when the Missouri State Highway Patrol received information that Morley was traveling west on Interstate 70 in the Kansas City area. Troopers utilized automated license plate readers and undercover officers to locate his vehicle on a state highway in western Missouri. A Kansas City police helicopter followed the truck until it left the pavement and became stuck in the mud.

Morley was driving a white-cabbed metal flatbed work truck. Sgt. Justin Ewing, a spokesperson for the Missouri State Highway Patrol, said two rifles and a shotgun were recovered from the vehicle. Officials suspect the truck was stolen in Illinois. While it is unclear what Morley's final destination was, Ewing noted that the suspect likely had connections in the Kansas City area. However, authorities do not believe he stopped at any residences during his final leg of the journey.

Williamson County Sheriff Jeff Diederich provided details on the vehicle's origin. Diederich said Morley is suspected of stealing the white farm truck from a property southwest of Marion, Illinois. The sheriff also reported that Morley took clothes and three firearms from the same location. Deputies found a handwritten note of apology at the farm where the truck was stolen. The vehicle had a full tank of gas plus extra fuel. Diederich described information sharing between agencies as critical to the apprehension.

Morley escaped from the Northwest Correctional Complex in Tiptonville, Tennessee, on October 25. He slipped through a fence while wearing his prison clothes. Tiptonville is located in the far northwestern corner of the state, about 90 miles north of Memphis, in flat farmland near a bend in the Mississippi River. Surveillance video showed Morley stealing a truck from a farm near the prison. He abandoned that first vehicle last week in Marion, Illinois, roughly 120 miles north of the prison.

Morley was convicted of first-degree murder, aggravated burglary, tampering with evidence, vandalism, and evading arrest. His victim, Cody Birchfield, was a co-worker. Birchfield's body was found in a box under Morley's home in Carter County, eastern Tennessee, after the victim had been missing for several weeks. When Morley saw deputies at his home, he led them on a chase that ended in North Carolina.

The escape is the latest incident to strain Tennessee's prison system. In recent years, the Northwest Correctional Complex has reported several violent attacks involving inmates and staff. A grand jury returned dozens of indictments in July for five inmate killings and other violent acts. In September, Department of Correction Commissioner Frank Strada resigned after less than three years on the job, following the failed execution of Christa Pike.

Prison officials had offered a reward of up to $17,500 for information leading to Morley's arrest. The fugitive was captured more than a week after his initial flight from the facility.