One of the star's from the hugely popular Tiger King series on Netflix has been convicted of wildlife trafficking - and now faces up to 20 years in jail. In a statement from the attorney general of Virginia, Jason Miyares said Bhagavan 'Doc' Antle was accused of illegally buying endangered lion cubs for display and profit at his South Carolina zoo.
Antle is known to many due to his appearance on Netflix's Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness, a documentary miniseries that focused on tiger breeders. The series is still one of the streaming platform's most successful titles to date, with viewing numbers boosted by much of the world entering the first Coronavirus lockdown at the same time as its release.
Antle featured as part of the series and is the latest member of the cast to be plagued by legal issues. Prosecutor Michelle Welch said Myrtle Beach Safari's lucrative petting zoo motivated Antle to maintain a steady supply of immature lion cubs that he purchased from Wilson's Wild Animal Park near Winchester.
Ms Welch called the arrangement a "cub pipeline" from Virginia to South Carolina. When Antle and Keith Wilson, the park's former owner, began doing business in 2015 the buying and selling of lions was still legal.
However, by the end of the year in the US, lions were designated as an endangered species. It meant cubs could only be traded between zoos and wildlife preserves who were part of established breeding programmes with permits. This led to a thriving black market, in which Ms Welsh claims saw Antle engage in three illegal cub exchanges.
In 2020, Antle was indicted on several offenses including counts of wildlife trafficking and conspiracy. Meanwhile a year earlier, 119 animals including lions, tigers and bears, were seized from Wilson's roadside zoo after a judge found that Wilson "cruelly treated, neglected, or deprived" the animals.
Wilson stated during his testimony that Antle provided him with upfront payment disguised as a donation. According to Wilson, Antle would typically pay between $2,500 and $3,000 for a cub, except for one instance in 2017 when Antle exchanged three lynx kittens for three lion cubs.
Wilson is also charged with nine misdemeanour counts of animal cruelty and 10 felony counts of trading endangered animals. According to the Winchester Star, Judge Alexander Iden dismissed four additional animal cruelty charges against Antle, along with all charges against his two adult daughters.
The jury also acquitted 'Doc' of five counts of animal cruelty. Antle lawyers claim his prosecution is politicly motivated and that the endangered animal exchanges were actually gifts and money sent were donations for an expanded tiger habitat.
