Doc Antle, best known for his role in “The Tiger King,” has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to violate the Lacey Act and money laundering. Now, he faces ten years in prison.
Antle is the owner of Myrtle Beach Safari – an exotic wildlife preserve – featured in the Netflix series. The 63-year-old man is accused of trafficking in endangered animals and fraudulently trying to cover the money trail.
In June, Antle was acquitted of five counts of animal cruelty by a jury. The judge also dismissed the four other animal cruelty charges Antle was facing and all charges against his two adult daughters.
‘Tiger King’ Doc Antle Pleads Guilty In Federal Case
Antle pleaded guilty in Charleston federal court to charges of conspiracy to violate the Lacey Act and conspiracy to launder money. Antle faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000 and three years of supervised release for each charge.
He has not yet been sentenced. The exact prison sentence will be determined by the judge.
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The Lacey Act prohibits the trafficking of illegally taken wildlife, fish or plants, including animals protected under the Endangered Species Act.
According to reports, Antle, as of 2018, paid large sums of money to illegally buy endangered species and then sold them to unknown customers. That year, he bought two young cheetahs for $35,000 with the help of a stranger he paid to travel to Florida to make the transaction.
In 2019, he allegedly sold two lion cubs to an organization in exchange for $15,000. He is also accused of making a $10,000 payment to the Rare Species Fund in exchange for two tigers transported from South Carolina to Montana in March of that year.
The owner of the wildlife preserve, also director of the nonprofit Rare Species Fund, paid $200,000 in cash for a young chimpanzee in May 2020. The creature was transported from Florida to Myrtle Beach Safari. In addition to the crime of trafficking in endangered animals, Antle is accused of falsifying paperwork to cover up his illegal transactions.
He reportedly used bulk cash payments to hide the transactions and requested payments for the endangered species be made to his nonprofit as a “donation.” He was accused of money laundering by making transactions using cash obtained from transporting and harboring illegal immigrants.
Prosecutors found evidence of money laundering between February and April 2022. To hide their illicit cash, Antle and his co-conspirators deposited the cash into bank accounts they controlled. They will then write a check to the person who gave them the cash but not without taking a 15% fee per transaction.
“The defendant describes himself as a conservationist, yet repeatedly violated laws that protect endangered animals and then tried to cover up those violations,” Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Department of Justice’s Environment and Natural Resources Division said of Antle.
“This investigation revealed a pattern of illegal wildlife transactions orchestrated by the defendants under the guise of donations and false paperwork,” said the US Fish and Wildlife Service Assistant Director, Office of Law Enforcement.
He continued, “The Service and our partners will continue to hold accountable those involved in wildlife trafficking and other related crimes to ensure the future of all federally protected species. This service will continue to bring to justice individuals who profit from the illegal trade of big cats and endangered species.”
Antle is the latest “Tiger King” star to be embroiled in legal trouble. Remember that the main star, Joe Exotic, has been behind bars as part of a 21-year sentence for trying to hire two different men to kill Big Cat Rescue CEO and “Tiger King” nemesis Carole Baskin.
Also, in January 2022, we reported that Masha Diduk — who played Jeff Lowe’s hot nanny on the show — was arrested for a major robbery in Vegas.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
