Joe Exotic from Tiger King and her husband Dillon Passage divorce after more than three years of marriage.
The docuserie star found out that Passage, 25, pulls the plug of the relationship through a phone call to the prison in Fort Worth, Texas, where the former animal trainer, aged 58, is currently serving a 22-year sentence for conspiracy to murder rival Carole Baskin.
Exotic – the full name of Joseph Allen Maldonado-Passage – is heartbreaking according to his lawyer Francisco Hernandez, who spoke to TMZ.
Jilted Joe is considering rushing to file for divorce to defeat Passage, according to a source, but another said he is still weighing his options.
It’s over: Tiger King star Joe Exotic and Dillon Passage’s three-year-old husband are divorcing after Passage gave up Netflix on the phone, while Exotic continues to serve his prison sentence.
He allegedly sent an e-mail to a friend while he was fresh from the phone call, telling them that he felt “abandoned and alone and that he just wanted to mean something to someone,” according to TMZ.
Although the former owner of the Greater Wynnewood Exotic Animal Park seems upset about the breakup, Dillon says there are no heavy feelings and will continue to support Joe with his prison sentence.
It seems that Passage wants to break up with Joe because she became alone during her husband behind bars and would like to meet again.
Maldonado-Passage was previously married to Travis Maldonado, who accidentally shot himself in the head in Joe’s animal park in October 2017, just two months before tying the knot with Passage.
Nine months later, Joe will be arrested for his murder plot with Carole Baskin.
Tragic: Maldonado-Passage was previously married to Travis Maldonado, who accidentally shot himself in the head in Joe’s animal park in October 2017, just two months before tying the knot with Passage
Joe spoke out against her husband earlier this month in an angry tweet accusing Dillon of neglecting him.
He wrote: “The money destroyed my whole family. I will not allow him to kill my soul. Earnings, Dillon, [Dillon’s manageer] Jeff Duncan, Carole [Baskin.]’
He also mentioned her late husband Maldonado, writing: “Come on March 22 for Travis’ birthday, I will keep my promise I made the day he died. I don’t need fame, money or bulls ***, you can have everything …
The former zoo operator wrote in another tweet: ‘… It’s pretty sad to be in prison and yet it means not doing anything you can’t even answer a phone call from. I see where I’m sitting. #justiceforjoeexotic #tigerking. ‘
Dillon took to Instagram with a long statement in response, which he posted with a photo of himself and his dogs.
Wedding bells: Dillon and Joe tied the knot in December 2017, just two months after Travis died at the age of 23, due to an accidentally self-inflicted injury.
In response: Dillon took to Instagram with a long statement in response, which he posted with a photo of himself and his dogs
He wrote: “I wanted to receive a post to address Joe’s recent work on social media. He and I, like everyone else in any relationship, go through ups and downs. This is amplified by the fact that our relationship is very public and by the fact that one of its only selling points is social media.
“Unfortunately, it is not the healthiest place to deal with personal business and not how I normally deal with my relationship challenges.
“Obviously, Joe is having a difficult time in prison, and I don’t think any of us can blame him for that. I never spoke badly of Joe, through ups and downs and through his good and evil. I see through all this and I recognize and realize for what it is; a man in prison just trying to do his best.
The Florida bartender added: “The presidential pardon we were all waiting for never came, and our hopes were dashed. I stay in support of Joe and I want to be there for him. At 25, I have to make sure I’m healthy, both physically and mentally. I know that although Joe can mess up, he wants the best for me, just as I do for him. I’m sure he wants me to live a full life, as you all do for the people you love.
The company of the three: Joe was in a polyamorous relationship with Travis and John Finlay, 36 years old, at the time they had an informal wedding with three partners in 2015, before he and Finlay fell
“Social networks are not natural for me and, if I am calm, it is usually because I work on all this and process as much as I can. I didn’t want to and I don’t want the spotlight. I was thrown into this and I do my best to support Joe, to live my life and to love my dogs ”.
He concluded: “Be kind to people socially; you never know the challenges they face and the hardships they face. There is always a hidden struggle for all of us.
Dillon and Joe tied the knot in December 2017, just two months after Travis died at the age of 23 from an accidentally self-inflicted injury.
Behind bars: He was arrested in September 2018 and later convicted of 17 federal charges of animal abuse and two counts of attempted murder with rent in his plot to kill Baskin.
Presidential pardon: The Kansas native apologized to President Donald Trump in September, sending him a handwritten letter, and subsequently sued the Justice Department in December as a last-minute effort (August 2013)
Joe had a polyamorous relationship with 36-year-old Travis and John Finlay when they had an informal wedding with three partners in 2015, before he and Finlay fell.
He was arrested in September 2018 and later convicted of 17 federal charges of animal abuse and two counts of attempted murder, hired in his plot to kill Baskin.
The Kansas native apologized to President Donald Trump in September, sending him a handwritten letter, and later sued the Justice Department in December as a last-ditch effort.
Most recently, he hired a new legal team as he intends to use the Tiger King’s unarmed footage to push a new lawsuit.
Lawsuit: Most recently hired a new Phillips & Hunt legal team, which previously represented the family of Baskin’s missing husband, Don Lewis, while intending to use Tiger King’s unaffiliated footage to promote a new lawsuit.
Phillips & Hunt Attorney John Phillips, who previously represented the family of Baskin’s missing husband, Don Lewis, made the announcement in a video at Joe’s Twitter.
He said: “We are honored to announce that Joe has kept our company. We will seek a new trial and justice in criminal and civil courts.
Joe also promised some juicy secrets in Tiger King: The Official Tell-All Memoir, due out in November.
He told E! The news of the book: “It will be a real book … All those who have ever done something good will be there and whoever has the bones in your closet, you should be careful.”
Dirty Secrets: Joe also promised some juicy secrets in Tiger King: The Official Tell-All Memoir, due out in November