ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. The family of a Florida man who disappeared in 1997 and appeared on the hit TV series “Tiger King” has hired a lawyer and is offering $ 100,000 in exchange for information to resolve the case.
Attorney John Phillips held a news conference in Tampa on Monday and announced an independent investigation into the disappearance of Don Lewis. He also said he had filed a lawsuit on behalf of the Lewis family against Lewis’ second wife Carole Baskin in an attempt to deposit her and get her to speak on the record. He and his family also paid for Tampa area billboards to request information in the case.
Lewis disappeared a day before a planned trip to Costa Rica and was never found. He was legally pronounced dead in 2002. He and Baskin started the animal center, which later became Big Cat Rescue Corp. was born in Tampa, Florida.
Three of Lewis’ daughters were at the news conference. Lewis’ youngest daughter, Gale Rathbone, expressed gratitude to anyone interested in the case.
‘Unfortunately, our little family tragedy has become your tragedy. Our quest for closure and truth has also become your mission, ‘she said. ‘We all know now that (Lewis) was not a perfect man. But deserve only the perfect under our righteousness? ”
In an email sent to the Associated Press on Monday, Baskin said she would not comment. “It has been my policy not to wait on waiver of legal conduct until it is resolved,” she wrote. “I had told some news reports that I thought the press conference on August 10 was just a publicity stunt, but at the time, it was not aware that there would be proceedings pending.”
Lewis’ case, and Baskin’s, were presented in “Tiger King.” Baskin is still the owner of Big Cat Rescue, and lobbies for abolishing privately owned wildlife.
“Tiger King” was a documentary series about Joseph Maldonado-Passage, also called “Joe Exotic”, an eccentric former sugar joker in Oklahoma who loves big cats.
Earlier this year, Maldonado-Passage was sentenced to 22 years in prison for his role in a plot for murder-for-hire. He was convicted of attempting to hire someone to kill Baskin, who had tried to shut him down, accusing the Oklahoma Zoo of abusing animals and selling large cat cubs.
In relative terms, Maldonado-Passage asked questions about Baskin’s ex-husband, Jack “Don” Lewis. The documentary extensively dealt with the repeated allegations of Maldonado-Passage that Baskin murdered her husband and possibly gave him to her tigers. Baskin has not been charged with any crime and has released statements several times making the allegations in the series.
Maldonaldo Passage is in jail. In June, a federal judge handed over control of the Oklahoma Zoo previously run by Maldonado Passage – also known as Joe Exotic – to Big Cat Rescue Corp.
Baskin previously sued Maldonado-Passage for trademark and copyright infringement and won a $ 1 million civil lawsuit against him. The judge found that ownership of the zoo was fraudulently transferred to Maldonado-Passage’s mother in an attempt to pay the verdict.
In March, the Hillsborough County sheriff asked for tips in Lewis ‘case and announced a reopening of Lewis’ case.
