Tennessee inmate convicted of murder escapes from prison, manhunt underway: Officials

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A manhunt is underway for a Tennessee inmate serving a life sentence for murder after he escaped from prison.

The Tennessee Department of Correction said that Jacob Allen Morley, 28, escaped the Northwest Correctional Complex in Tiptonville, Tennessee, on Sunday. He was sentenced to life in prison after being convicted in 2025 of murdering Cody Birchfield three years earlier.

Prison staff discovered Morley was unaccounted for around 11:30 p.m. Sunday and immediately conducted an emergency count and search of the facility, according to a Tennessee Department of Correction statement given to Fox News Digital.

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Surveillance footage shows convicted murderer Jacob Allen Morley inside Northwest Correctional Complex before his escape Sunday. Authorities said Morley was captured on security video breaching a prison fence. (Tennessee Department of Correction)

Security video showed Morley breaching a fence while still wearing prison clothing.

Morley is described as 5 feet, 11 inches tall and weighing 240 pounds, with brown hair and green eyes. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation said he should be "considered dangerous," adding Morley is now on the state's most wanted list.

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In addition to the first-degree murder conviction, he was also found guilty of burglary, vandalism, tampering with evidence and evading arrest.

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Jacob Allen Morley, 28, was serving a life sentence for the 2022 murder of Cody Birchfield when he escaped from a Tennessee prison Sunday, according to correction officials. (Tennessee Department of Correction)

Federal and state law enforcement is assisting to help find Morley, according to officials.

Birchfield disappeared in early February 2022 after he was last seen in Elizabethton, Tennessee. According to WJHL, investigators from the Carter County Sheriff's Office saw indications that a "violent crime" had occurred inside his house.

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On March 2, 2022, Morley was arrested after a police chase that went to the North Carolina state line. After the arrest, Birchfield's body was found underneath Morley's home.

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Surveillance footage shows Jacob Allen Morley, 28, inside Northwest Correctional Complex in Tiptonville, Tennessee, before he escaped Sunday. Morley was serving a life sentence for murder, according to the Tennessee Department of Correction. (Tennessee Department of Correction)

Morley's former girlfriend, Landree Sheperd, testified at Morley's trial and claimed that the defendant said at one point that "he f---ing killed him."

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People with information about Morley's whereabouts are encouraged to contact 844-832-3463.

Adam Sabes is a reporter for Fox News Digital. Story tips can be sent to Adam.Sabes@fox.com and on Twitter @asabes10.