Federal officials have seized 68 big cats from an Oklahoma national park that was featured in Tiger King, a Netflix series. A jaguar, seven lions, 46 tigers and 15 lion-tiger hybrids were seized, the Department of Justice said. The cats owned by Jeffery Lowe and his wife Lauren Lowe would have been sold, purchased or transported—violating the Endangered Species Act.
“This seizure should send a clear message that the justice department takes alleged harm to captive-bred animals protected under the Endangered Species Act very seriously,” Jean Williams, the acting assistant attorney general of the justice department’s environment and natural resources division told The Guardian.
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The series, Tiger King, about private zoos and their owners was hugely popular when it released on Netflix in March last year.
The case was being investigated by the Department of Agriculture and the Department of the Interior’s fish and wildlife service after the couple was accused in November of violating the ESA and the Animal Welfare Act.
The couple were accused by the justice department for exhibiting the animals without a license and putting their health at risk. Several of the animals were found to have bone disorders and calcium deficiency.
Lowe is the former business partner of Joe Exotic, who was featured in the Netflix show. Exotic, whose real name is Joseph Maldonado-Passage, is currently serving a 22-year sentence for his involvement in a contract killing plot and animal abuse, a BBC report reads. After the show was aired and Joe Exotic jailed, the Lowes had taken over the animals in the park.