Tiger King star Bhagavan 'Doc' Antle has been charged with wildlife trafficking and animal cruelty in relation to his lions.
Antle, who owns Myrtle Beach Safari in South Carolina, was one of a number of big cat owners who appeared in the popular Netflix docu-series where he showed off his vast collection, including lions and tiger cubs.
According to Attorney General Mark Herring the charges come after a months-long investigation, which started before Tiger King aired, from the Animal Law Unit into the selling and transporting of lions between Antle and Keith Wilson, who owns Wilson's Wild Animal Park in Winchester, Virginia.
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A statement about the charges says Antle has been 'charged with one felony count of wildlife trafficking, one felony count of conspiracy to wildlife traffic, four misdemeanour counts of conspiracy to violate the Endangered Species Act, and nine misdemeanour counts of animal cruelty'.
Wilson has been 'charged with one felony count of wildlife trafficking, one felony count of conspiracy to wildlife traffic, four misdemeanour counts of violating the Endangered Species Act, four misdemeanour counts of conspiracy to violate the Endangered Species Act, and nine misdemeanour counts of animal cruelty'.
Two of Antle's daughters also face similar charges, with daughter Tawny Antle 'charged with one misdemeanour count of cruelty to animals and one misdemeanour count of violating the Endangered Species Act'.
And Tilakum Watterson 'charged with two misdemeanour counts of cruelty to animals and two misdemeanour counts of violating the Endangered Species Act'.
It is illegal to sell lions, which are protected species under the Endangered Species Act, across state lines.
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Court documents seen by the Daily Mail say: "On or about July 24 or 25, 2019 Bhagavan Antle did unlawfully conspire with Keith Wilson to take within the Commonwealth any fish or wildlife (to wit: one female lion) appearing on any list of threatened or endangered species..."
Even before he became somewhat of a household name following the release of Tiger King Antle's zoo had been a popular tourist attraction and Antle even worked with Britney Spears iconic 2001 performance at the VMA, which included an on-stage tiger.
Featured Image Credit: NetflixTopics: TV and Film, Animals, US