Jacob Morley Steals Lindamood Planting Truck After Tiptonville Prison Escape

Tennessee authorities launched a manhunt on Monday for Jacob Allen Morley, a 28-year-old inmate serving a life sentence for murder. He fled the Northwest Correctional Complex in Tiptonville by cutting through a perimeter fence and stealing a work vehicle.

Prison staff realized Morley was missing around 11:30 p.m. Sunday. They immediately conducted an emergency count and searched the facility. Security footage captured him exiting the prison grounds while still wearing his uniform.

The escape continued in the early hours of Monday. At approximately 1:00 a.m., video from the 400 block of Keystone Drive showed Morley taking a white 2008 Ford F-350. The truck sits about two miles south of the prison. It bears the name Lindamood Planting Company on the side and carries an air compressor in its bed. The Tennessee license plate is 138BBQV.

The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation added Morley to the state's most wanted list and advised that he be considered dangerous. He stands 5 feet 11 inches tall, weighs 240 pounds, and has brown hair and green eyes. Federal and state law enforcement agencies are assisting in the search.

Morley received his life sentence in 2025 after a jury convicted him of first-degree murder. He also pleaded guilty to burglary, vandalism, tampering with evidence, and evading arrest. The conviction stemmed from the death of Cody Birchfield, who vanished in February 2022 after being last seen in Elizabethton.

Investigators found signs of a violent crime inside Birchfield's home. Morley was arrested on March 2, 2022, following a police chase that reached the North Carolina border. Birchfield's body was later discovered beneath Morley's house. During the trial, Morley's former girlfriend Landree Sheperd testified that he told her, 'he f, ing killed him.'

The public can report tips regarding Morley's location by calling 844-832-3463.