RICHMOND, Va. — "Tiger King" star Bhagavan Antle, better known as "Doc Antle," was sentenced to two years in prison in a Virginia court on Tuesday after he was convicted of illegally purchasing endangered lion cubs in Frederick County.
Prosecutors say Antle bought the cubs to be displayed at his South Carolina zoo business.
Antle was convicted in June of two felony counts of wildlife trafficking and two felony counts of conspiring to wildlife traffic.
Antle got two years with time suspended for each charge, but each sentence will run concurrently. He'll also have to pay a fee of $2,500 per conviction, totaling $10,000.
Attorney General Jason Miyares's office said Antle is not allowed to work, own, possess, broker, buy, sell, trade, transfer, barter or donate any exotic animals for five years in the Commonwealth of Virginia.
“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," Miyares said. "This case sends a clear message that bad actors will not be tolerated in the Commonwealth."