“Tiger King” star Bhagavan Antle, better known on the show as “Doc Antle,” must spend thousands of dollars and stay away from exotic animals after he was sentenced Tuesday for illegally purchasing endangered lion cubs. extinction in Virginia.
Antle was convicted by a jury in June of two counts of wildlife trafficking and two counts of conspiracy to traffic wildlife after purchasing the animals, which he planned to display outside his business in South Carolina, according to Virginia’s attorney general. , Jason Miyares.
A Frederick County judge on Tuesday sentenced Antle to two years in prison with time suspended for each count, to run concurrently. He must pay the maximum fee of $2,500 per conviction, which adds up to a $10,000 fine.
Additionally, Antle cannot work, own, own, trade, buy, sell, barter, transfer, exchange or donate exotic animals for five years in Virginia, Miyares said.
“Today concludes a multi-year investigation and prosecution by my office. “In Virginia, we uphold the rule of law without exception, whether it involves violent repeat offenders, Big Pharma, scammers and scammers, or wildlife traffickers,” the district attorney said in a statement.
“This case sends a clear message that bad actors will not be tolerated in the Commonwealth.”
Bhagavan “Doc” Antle was sentenced Tuesday to two years in prison, with a suspended sentence.
Antle was featured prominently in the 2020 Netflix phenomenon “Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness,” which followed big cat breeders and private zoos in the US.
The series dove into the life and times of bizarre Oklahoma zoo operator Joe Exotic, who was also the subject of animal abuse and was convicted of a plot to kill rival zookeeper Carole Baskin.
Antle has a history of violations dating back to 1989, when he was fined by the U.S. Department of Agriculture for abandoning deer and peacocks at his Virginia zoo.
He later racked up more than 35 USDA violations for mistreating animals.
In June 2022, Antle was charged with laundering more than half a million dollars, which federal prosecutors said was the proceeds of an operation to smuggle illegal immigrants across the border with Mexico into the United States.
He faces up to 20 years in federal prison if convicted of money laundering charges.
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Source: vtt.edu.vn