The convicted murderer who escaped last week from a Tennessee prison has been captured in Missouri, authorities said Tuesday.
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation said Jacob Morley was captured near Kansas City — more than 450 miles from the Tiptonville facility where he was serving a life sentence.
The TBI said more information about his capture will be shared when it’s available.
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His capture ends a nightmare for the family of Cody Birchfield, who Morley killed in 2022.
Carrie Norman, Birchfield’s sister, told ABC News she was “reliving this horrible tragedy all over again” when she learned of Morley’s escape.
“I find myself asking the public for help to find my brother’s murderer when he should be in prison locked away,” she said.
Morley, 28, made his way to the exterior of the Northwest Correctional Complex late on Oct. 25 and breached a fence lining the prison’s perimeter.
Investigators said surveillance cameras showed him in his prison outfit stealing a truck from a nearby farm and driving north.
Authorities said the stolen vehicle was found Oct. 27 in Marion, Illinois, about 120 miles north of the prison.
Carter County court records said Morley shot Cody Birchfield in the back of the head and stuffed the victim’s body inside a metal box under Morley’s home in 2022.
When police arrived at Morley’s home to talk to him about Birchfield’s death, he fled and led police on a chase into North Carolina.
A judge sentenced Morley to life in prison in June 2025. He was also convicted of aggravated burglary, tampering with evidence, vandalism and evading arrest in the case.
Morley is not eligible for release until December 2083.
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