TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — The big cats are all gone, sold to a sanctuary in Arkansas, but the land that was once the site of “Big Cat Rescue” is being sold.
Big Cat Rescue became infamous as a result of the Netflix hit “Tiger King.”
Joseph Maldonado-Passage, better known as ” Joe Exotic,” has often claimed he believes his rival, Carole Baskin, who owned Big Cat Rescue, killed her second husband on the property.
Don Lewis first established what he called “Wildlife on Easy Street.”
Lewis was reported missing in 1997 and hasn’t been seen since. Carole Baskin took over the operation and renamed it ” Big Cat Rescue.” She later married Howard Baskin.
There is no evidence that Don Lewis was murdered or that Carole Baskin or anyone else killed him.
However, there has long been speculation that Lewis was killed and then buried on the property, perhaps in a septic tank.
Chris Castillo is a former assistant state attorney who has prosecuted many criminal cases. He is now a private attorney handling criminal defense and civil litigation.
Castillo said it would not be easy for investigators to obtain a warrant to search the land where Big Cat Rescue is located, while Baskin and her husband control the property.
“In any case, you have to evidence to the court probable cause to be able to obtain a search warrant,” Castillo said.
He said it will take more than the speculation of some people for investigators to obtain the warrant.
“You have to establish that there is actually facts or evidence threw sworn testimony that a crime is occuring, has occurred or will occur. Just mere speculation or conjecture or rumor is not enough to establish probable cause,” Castillo said.
However, he said there may be motivation for new owners of the land to allow the search.
“I wouldn’t imagine that they would want the sheriff’s office to come in and break up their foundation to dig and see what is inside that septic tank,” Castillo said.
However, even if investigators do search the land, Castillo believes it will be very difficult for them to find any evidence of murder.
“This missing person’s report was filed with the sheriff’s office years and years ago, and so even if there was some evidence at the time that Mr. Lewis went missing that existed in that septic tank, there is a probability or a possibility that it may no longer exist in that location,” Castillo said.
Jim Williamson lives near Big Cat Rescue and has done work for Carole Baskin and her husband Howard.
Williamson doesn’t believe the rumors.
“Her and her husband now have always been very, very nice to me and so, got nothing bad to say about her,” said Williamson.
He said he just doesn’t believe Carole Baskin could have murdered Don Lewis.
“I don’t buy all of the stuff that she chopped him up and all of that stuff, so it doesn’t register with me at all,” said Williamson.
He does have a warning for the new owners of the property about something else though, before they start building homes.
“I would tell em they might want to consider trying to buy up the pig farm that’s back there because it gets quite smelly at times,” Williamson said.