Jacob Morley, 28, a prisoner serving a life sentence for a 2022 murder, escaped the Northwest Correctional Complex in Tiptonville, Tennessee, on October 25. He reportedly cut through security fences during the night and was on the run for over a week before being apprehended. Morley's escape led him to a farm near Marion, Illinois, where he spent time in a hunting shed, consumed beer, and prepared garlic bread. "He had left a letter with specific information in that letter, basically just saying 'sorry I stole your truck,' and you know, 'tell my mom I love her' and stuff like that," Williamson County Sheriff Jeff Diederich told CNN.
Morley stole a white 2008 Ford F-350 truck from the property on October 26, driving it over 130 miles before abandoning it in Marion. The truck was located by authorities approximately 24 hours later. Surveillance footage captured Morley walking away from the abandoned vehicle and along his subsequent escape route, but he was eventually lost to authorities. The TBI added Morley to its most wanted list and offered a reward for information leading to his arrest. "We're talking about hundreds and hundreds of acres, and it adjoins the national forest, so he could have probably been in a deer stand or a hunting cabin that’s not occupied," Diederich told CNN.
Investigators received a tip that led them to a hunting camp shed in Illinois, where they recovered the note Morley had written. By this time, Morley had traveled over 300 miles from Marion, heading south on Missouri Route 291. His escape concluded near Norborne, Missouri, about 50 miles east-northeast of Kansas City, when the truck he was driving got stuck in mud. Roadside cameras and a helicopter assisted authorities in his capture. The police found two rifles and a shotgun in the vehicle, which Morley allegedly also stole from the farm, along with clothing. Officials have not determined why Morley traveled to Marion or why he was driving near Kansas City. The sheriff indicated there was no evidence of outside assistance in the escape. "How he ended up in Marion is kind of a mystery," Diederich told The Independent.
Morley was taken to the Lafayette County Jail in Lexington, Missouri. He faces federal charges in Tennessee for unlawful flight to avoid prosecution and in Missouri for being a felon in possession of a firearm. Prosecutors also indicated potential charges in Illinois. Morley was convicted of first-degree murder for killing his co-worker Cody Birchfield in 2022. His request for a new trial was denied in May after his sentencing in June 2025.