“Tiger King” star Bhagavan “Doc” Antle was taken to a South Carolina prison by the FBI on Friday night
Antle, 62, was jailed at a North Myrtle Beach detention center around 5:40 p.m., and there was no charge against him, according to government records. TMZ reported that the arrest was related to money laundering.
Antle, who appeared as Joe Exotic’s rival in the hit Netflix documentary series, owns Myrtle Beach Safari.
In recent years, he has been charged with multiple offenses of trafficking and ill-treatment of exotic animals. Activists applauded his latest arrest in a statement to The Post.
“We applaud the Justice Department and the FBI for arresting Bhagavan ‘Doc’ Antle, a longtime rogue and inhumane trader of dangerous big cats,” said Marty Irby, executive director of Action. of Animal Welfare.
“Irresponsible breeding, inhuman living conditions and public exploitation are a serious problem in the United States, and the cage of these wild animals also poses a threat to human health and safety.
No charges have been filed against Bhagavan “Doc” Antle. National Geographic / Muck Media Joe Exotic is currently serving a 21-year prison sentence for conspiring to kill his archenemy Carole Baskin.Netflix USA / AFP via Getty Images
A Netflix documentary series “Tiger King: The Doc Antle Story” alleged that Antle had sex with minors, abused women, and swindled a wildlife charity.
Antle told WBTW-TV in December that all the allegations were “absolutely false.”