‘Tiger King’ star Joe Exotic transferred to NC medical facility as he battles cancer
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
Joseph Maldonado-Passage, widely known as “Joe Exotic,” was unexpectedly transferred last week to a medical facility in North Carolina, according to his attorney.
The star of the Netflix series “Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness,” Maldonado-Passage had been previously diagnosed with prostate cancer, attorney John M. Phillips said in a news release.
The former zookeeper became an early pandemic phenomenon after being featured in the documentary series.
In 2019, a federal jury found him guilty on two counts of hiring someone to murder a woman in Florida, along with multiple counts of falsifying wildlife records and violating the Endangered Species Act.
Maldonado-Passage was sentenced to serve 22 years in prison, but in July a federal appeals court ruled that the trial court had improperly calculated sentencing guidelines, The Associated Press reported.
The court has ordered that he receive a new sentence.
Maldonado-Passage, who has maintained his innocence, has continued to seek his freedom.
Phillips said Maldonado-Passage’s transfer from the Fort Worth Federal Medical Center in Texas to the Butner Federal Medical Center in North Carolina had originally been scheduled for later this month.
The Butner medical facility houses more than 750 inmates with special health needs, according to the Federal Bureau of Prisons.
It is one facility in the Butner prison complex about 15 miles north of Durham.
“The last few years has taken everything from Joe Exotic,” Phillips said in the release. “His property, his freedom, his husband sold his clothes, his parents have passed away and now he faces cancer. Please keep Joe in your thoughts and prayers.”
Season 2 of “Tiger King” premiered Wednesday on Netflix.
