Zoo owner Bhagavan “Doc” Antle, who appeared in Netflix’s “Tiger King” documentary series, was indicted Thursday (6/30) in the US and could face up to 25 years in prison on charges of wildlife trafficking and money laundering. . In addition to him, four other people have been accused of participating in the criminal actions against Antle, according to the United States Department of Justice.
Doc Antle was arrested earlier this month by the FBI in Horry County, South Carolina, but the charges were not released at the time.
Andrew Jon Sawyer, Meredith Bybee, Charles Sammut and Jason Clay also indicted. According to the Department of Justice, Sawyer and Bybee are Antle employees and partners at the Myrtle Beach Safari Zoo. Sammut and Clay own other safaris in the United States and would do business with Antle.
The prosecution claims it has repeatedly trafficked wild animals, including chimpanzees and cheetahs, into American territory, in violation of federal legislation on the matter.
But Doc Antle’s crimes also include money laundering. He and Sawyer laundered $ 500,000 from a scheme that involved transporting illegal immigrants from Mexico to the United States. The money was laundered through the Antle Zoo in South Carolina, which inflated the number of visitors.
Antle and Sawyer face up to 20 years in federal prison on money laundering charges and up to five years on wildlife trafficking charges. The others were only framed for trafficking in wild animals.
Following its stint in the first season of “Tiger Mafia,” Antle became the centerpiece of a spin-off of a Netflix documentary, “Tiger Mafia: The Doc Antle Story,” released in 2021, which covered various reports of illegal activity. .
In 2020, Antle was the subject of two criminal charges related to wildlife trafficking. He also faced allegations of having inappropriate relationships with minors and running a cult in his Myrtle Beach business. At the time, Antle denied the allegations.
Despite the allegations, he has maintained good connections with Hollywood. Antle has provided animals for films such as “The Mighty Joe Young” and “The Jungle Book”, was credited as “Chief Animal Trainer” in both “Ace Ventura” plays and was hired as an animal expert on “Dr . Dolittle “. .
It is worth mentioning that the main character of “Tiger Mafia” is also in prison. Joe Exotic was sentenced in January 2020 to two decades in prison for plotting the murder of his rival, activist Carole Baskin.
Source: Terra
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