US authorities recaptured Jacob Allen Morley, 28, a convicted murderer, on Tuesday in Missouri, ending a week-long manhunt that followed his Jacob Morley escape from a Tennessee prison on October 25.
Morley was serving a life sentence for the 2022 killing of his colleague Cody Birchfield when he escaped the Northwest Correctional Complex in Tiptonville, Tennessee, according to BBC World. Missouri State Highway Patrol apprehended him without incident in Carroll County, Missouri, on Tuesday, BBC World reported.
Correctional officers found Morley missing at about 11:30 p.m. on October 25, according to CBS News US. Security footage showed him in his prison uniform slipping through a fence.
Authorities said Morley stole a white 2008 Ford F-350 in the early hours of October 27, and the truck was later found in Marion, Illinois, according to CBS News US. After a tip that Morley was hiding on an Illinois property, his truck’s licence plate was tracked via automatic plate-reader technology into Missouri, BBC World reported.
Three firearms that had been reported stolen were recovered from the vehicle, BBC World reported.
The combined rewards offered by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, the governor’s office, the U.S. Marshals and other agencies totaled up to $17,500 for information leading to his arrest, according to CBS News US.
Morley was convicted of first-degree murder over Birchfield’s death. BBC World, citing Carter County court records it reviewed, reported that Birchfield’s body was found in a metal box under Morley’s home. His 2022 arrest also followed a police chase that crossed state lines into North Carolina, according to the same reporting.
The Northwest Correctional Complex holds up to 1,776 inmates. In July, a grand jury returned dozens of indictments over assaults on staff and the murders of five inmates, according to the reporting.
The sources differ on when the arrest was announced. BBC World says the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation announced on Wednesday that Morley was in custody. CBS News US says the agency announced on Tuesday that he was back in custody. Both agree the arrest took place on Tuesday.
Investigators have not released details of how Morley escaped beyond the breach of a fence, and CBS News US reports that little information has been released. Neither Morley nor his lawyer has responded in the sources, and it is not confirmed whether the reward money has been paid. The sources also do not explain reported concerns about prison leadership raised before the Tennessee Inmate Disciplinary Oversight Board.
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation said more information will be released as it becomes available, and the investigation into the escape and the multi-state search continues.
Sources
This article was written with AI assistance from the published reporting listed above. It is part of the World Brief daily news podcast.