Tiger King star Bhagavan "Doc" Antle is going to prison—but not for as long as prosecutors wanted—after admitting he broke federal law buying endangered animals to keep at his zoo in South Carolina. Antle, 65, was sentenced to one year and one day behind bars and fined $55,000 on Tuesday, nearly two years after he pleaded guilty to trafficking in exotic animals and money laundering. He entered his plea in November 2023. Antle appeared in the show's first season with Joe Exotic and Carole Baskin and was the star of the show's third season.
Prosecutors said Antle laundered money used in a human smuggling scheme because he needed large amounts of cash quickly to buy animals like chimpanzees, lions, tigers, cheetahs, and other creatures on the black market. Antle's lawyers requested a sentence of just probation or home confinement, saying their client needed to care for the 150 exotic animals that consume 1,000 pounds of meat a day at his Myrtle Beach Safari. They said many of the animals only respond to Antle.
About 25 friends and family packed a federal courtroom in Charleston on Tuesday. Several told Judge Joseph Dawson III that Antle was generous and caring, the AP reports. They said he raised hundreds of thousands of dollars to fight poaching and preserve wild habitats for tigers, lions, and chimpanzees. The judge was swayed. Federal guidelines called for about two years in prison, to which prosecutors agreed. But Dawson said, although Antle broke federal law, all the evidence pointed to him caring for animals. Antle apologized at the end of his sentencing hearing. "I made a mistake, I did stupid things," he said, adding, "I hope I'll be able to pull it back together for everybody."
,
uBlock 
,
and
Ghostery 
)
