A convicted murderer busted out of a Tennessee prison early Monday, sparking a major manhunt.
Jacob Morley, 28, was serving life for murdering a longtime friend whose body was found under the killer’s home in Elizabethtown in March 2022, according to WHJL.
He somehow escaped from the Northwest Correctional Complex in Lake County, according to the Tennessee Department of Corrections, which said a multi-agency search was underway.
It was not immediately clear how Morley — who was also convicted of abuse of a corpse, tampering with evidence, burglary and evading arrest — was able to get out.
A wanted poster showed him with stubble in his mugshot, with another photo showing the 240-pound killer with a full beard and dressed in his prison garb.
“Public safety is our top priority, and we are working closely with law enforcement agencies to apprehend the individual as quickly as possible,” the prisons department said. “We urge anyone with information to contact 911 immediately.”
He is described as 5-foot-11 with green eyes and brown hair.
Morley was serving life for murdering his long-time friend Cody Birchfield, 34, who was initially reported missing before his body was discovered days later buried and hidden underneath Morley’s home.
