Las Vegas court case for Jeff Lowe of ‘Tiger King’ draws protesters

The internet’s hive mind seems to have moved on from the popular “Tiger King” documentary that aired in March, but Jeff Lowe — a prominent character in the Netflix series — still has a court case to settle in Las Vegas.

Lowe was scheduled to appear in Las Vegas Municipal Court on Tuesday morning related to a 2017 citation for doing business without a license. Although the court hearing was postponed, a handful of activists with People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals stood in front of the Regional Justice Center with signs calling out what they said is Lowe’s abuse of animals.

“PETA’s problem with Jeff Lowe isn’t that he didn’t have the permits. Our problem is that he is taking these animals away from their mothers, using them as photo props, using them as money-making ventures,” said Katerina Davidovich, who led the brief protest.

In June 2017, Lowe was hoping to use a baby liger and pet tiger cub to start a business in Las Vegas where tourists could take pictures with the large cats. A liger is the hybrid offspring of a male lion and a female tiger. Lowe also operated The Jungle Bus, where he took people along the Strip to play with the cubs.

The bus is shown briefly in the Netflix documentary, where Joseph Maldonado-Passage, who goes by “Joe Exotic,” is seen handing over his Greater Wynnewood Exotic Animal Park in Oklahoma to Lowe.

Lowe is also seen in the documentary working with federal authorities to investigate Joe Exotic, who is now serving a 22-year sentence after he was convicted of attempting to hire someone to kill rival Carole Baskin, the operator of Big Cat Rescue in Florida.

But before Lowe owned the zoo, he rented a home in North Las Vegas, where guests could interact with his cubs. Lowe was arrested at the home in November 2017 by Clark County animal control officers.

Davidovich said protesters were at the courthouse on Tuesday to continue drawing attention to Lowe’s case, and to send a message to the zoo owner.

“People are waking up to what these animals go through,” she said. “We want people to know that these animals should be protected and respected, instead of used for a quick buck.”

Lowe pleaded guilty in April 2018, court records show. He agreed to pay a $10,000 fine and surrender his tiger, liger and lemur, which are now being kept at a private animal habitat in Pahrump.

In November 2018, a bench warrant was issued for Lowe. It was still active when the first episode of “Tiger King” aired March 20. The warrant was quashed March 31, court records show.

Lowe also is required to pay $2,500 in restitution to the city of Las Vegas, according to court records. It was unclear Tuesday when he will next appear in court.

Contact Katelyn Newberg at knewberg@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0240. Follow @k_newberg on Twitter.