Bhagavan Antle, better known as Doc Antle, from the 2020 series “Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness” has finally been sentenced to 2 years in prison after being convicted in June for wildlife trafficking and conspiring to traffic wildlife.
As the 2020 series showed the world inside the lives of big cat breeders and private US zoos, it focused heavily on the lives of the “Tiger King” Joe Exotic, rival zookeeper Carol Baskin, and rival zookeeper Doc Antle. This past June, Antle was finally convicted for two charges of wildlife trafficking and two charges of conspiring to traffic wildlife after illegally purchasing endangered lion cubs.
Yesterday, Antle finally faced sentencing where a Frederick County judge gave him 2 years in prison with time suspended for each charge. He is also required to pay the maximum fee of $2,500 per conviction, giving him a whopping $10,000 fine. Terms of his sentencing also include a 5 year ban for Antle to work, own, possess, broker, buy, sell, trade, transfer, barter or donate any exotic animals in the state of Virginia.
The District Attorney that prosecuted the case told the public that “Today concludes a multi- year investigation and prosecution by my office. In Virginia, we uphold the rule of law without exception, whether dealing with violent repeat offenders, big pharma, fraudsters and scammers, or wildlife traffickers. This case sends a clear message that bad actors will not be tolerated in the Commonwealth.”
Doc Antle has been racking up violations since 1989, when he was first fined by the US Department of Agriculture after abandoning deer and peacocks at his Virginia zoo. Since ’89, Antle has gathered over 35 USDA violations for the mistreatment of his animals. Antle is also still facing charges of money laundering with his June 2022 arrest.
He is being charged with laundering over half a million dollars which prosecutors claim were earnings from an illegal immigrant smuggling operation. Antle has yet to be convicted of this charge, although he could be facing up to 20 more years in federal prison if found guilty.