Star of the 'Tiger King' docuseries, Bhagavan 'Doc' Antle, pleads guilty to wildlife trafficking and federal money laundering and faces a maximum of up to five years in prison.
The safari owner and wildcat enthusiast in South Carolina pleaded guilty to the charges against him three years after his rise to fame thanks to the Netflix docuseries. The 63-year-old defendant's charges include a conspiracy to violate the Lacey Act and a conspiracy to launder money.
Wildlife Trafficking and Money Laundering
US District Judge Joseph Dawson III for the District of South Carolina accepted Antle's guilty plea and said that the defendant's sentencing would come after receiving and reviewing a sentencing report that the US Probation Office would prepare.
The wildlife enthusiast could also be fined up to $250,000 and may be given three years of supervised release for each count. In a statement, Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department's Environment and Natural Resources Division said that Antle was a conservationist but repeatedly violated laws protecting endangered animals, as per USA Today.
He added that Antle continuously tried to cover up those violations and added that the prosecution demonstrates their commitment to fighting against illegal trafficking. Kim noted that such crimes threaten the survival of endangered animals.
Prosecutors also said that the defendant conspired to violate the Lacey Act, which prohibits the trafficking of illegally taken wildlife, fish, or plants between September 2018 and May 2020. During this time, Antle allegedly directed the sale or purchase of two cheetah cubs, two lion cubs, two tigers, and one juvenile chimpanzee.
All of the aforementioned animals were considered to be protected under the Endangered Species Act. The Justice Department said the defendant used "bulk cash payments to hide the transactions." Officials also accused Antle of tampering with paperwork to show non-commercial transfers.
Investigators discovered evidence that Antle and a co-conspiratory had used cash that was acquired through the transportation and harboring of immigrants who illegally entered the country, according to ABC News.
History of Violations
The defendant and a co-conspirator would take the cash they received and deposit it into bank accounts that they controlled. Officials claimed they would then write a check to the individual who had provided the cash but would take a 15% fee per transaction.
In June, a jury acquitted Antle of five counts of animal cruelty, and the judge that oversaw that case dismissed four more animal cruelty charges against Antle and two charges against his two adult daughters.
Antle's guilty plea is the latest fallout for the subjects of 'Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem, and Madness.' The star of the show, Joe Exotic, is currently serving a 21-year prison sentence for trying to hire two different men to kill animal welfare activist Carol Baskin.
Several animal rights advocates have accused Antle of mistreating lions and other wildlife that he was supposed to take care of. He also has a history of recorded violations dating back to 1989. At the time, he was fined by the US Department of Agriculture for abandoning deer and peacocks at his zoo in Virginia.
In the years since that incident, Antle has had more than 35 USDA violations for mistreating animals, according to Fox Business.
