The Real Reason Joe Exotic Thinks He'll Be Dead Soon

Joe Exotic's name started popping up everywhere once Netflix's docu-series Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness was released in March 2020. As of this writing, the former zoo operator – who was known for his quirky antics on the series — is serving a 22-year sentence "for falsifying wildlife records" and "violating the Endangered Species Act by killing five tiger cubs," per the New York Post. 

Additionally, the Netflix star (whose legal name is Joseph Allen Maldonado-Passage) is in jail for his involvement in an attempted murder-for-hire plot against Carole Baskin, his arch-nemesis and owner of Big Cat Rescue in Florida.

Despite being locked up, Exotic is still making headlines. On June 2, 2020, CNN reported that a federal judge in Oklahoma City ruled that Baskin is now in control of Exotic's former zoo, The G.W. Exotic Animal Memorial Park, in Wynnewood, Okla. "The ruling is yet another emotional blow to an already fragile Joe, who has spent the past [three] straight months in solitary confinement," Exotic's team wrote in a statement. "He has been completely unable to defend himself."

"As hard as this news is, we refuse to accept defeat. Even as we type this message, Joe's legal team is filing appeals and his social media/PR team are rallying public support," Exotic's team added.

Now, Exotic claims he might not be on this earth for much longer. But why? Keep reading to get the answers.

In June 2020, TMZ obtained a handwritten letter from Joe Exotic, in which he claimed he'd be "dead in [two to three] months." The reason? He wrote that he hadn't been getting blood infusions to treat common variable immune deficiency (CVID) and hemoglobinemia, both of which he was allegedly born with. In the letter, he also begged celebrities like Kim Kardashian and Cardi B to free him. 

"I'm losing weight, sores won't heal ... It's like I have been sent to death row," he stated. "They stopped all my medication except one. This place is hell on earth."

Exotic also wrote that his "soul is dead" from being locked away. "I struggle every day to hold on to what little hope I can find," he said. "They keep me locked down 24/7 with no phone, email, or commissary, and you will never understand the mental abuse this does to a person."

On June 1, 2020, Fox 25 reported that Exotic was "in a medical center" in Dallas-Forth Worth, Texas "after being exposed to Covid-19 in April [2020]." Exotic's husband, Dillon Passage, told Andy Cohen on his SiriusXM series, Radio Andy, in April 2020 that the big cat enthusiast had "been moved to this new facility" due to "cases" at his previous jail.

Joe Exotic claims he's not sure if he's in a relationship at the moment despite legally being married to Dillion Passage. "I don't even know if I'm married anymore, seems everyone is so busy making money and being famous," he wrote in a letter obtained by TMZ.

"I don't get even a letter from Dillon," he continued. "Everyone sends pictures of him having fun and all but as a person screaming for help, I am asking you to stop. Please stop sending me pictures of him having a party while I live this hell."

In fact, Passage took a trip to Los Angeles in May 2020, where he hung out with Too Hot to Handle's Bryce Hirschberg and Harry Jowsey after his manager connected them, per People, and he called the getaway "absolutely amazing." 

Despite the distance between Exotic and Passage, it seems like these two are still trying to make things work. "The only thing that's keeping us going is really just hoping for the best and these lawyers seem like they have a really good plan to kind of get things executed," Passage told People in June 2020. 

Passage admitted he is not "really able to speak to [Exotic] very often" since he "doesn't have a lot of phone privileges." Passage added, "He really just wants to tell me he loves me and wants to see what I've been up to." 

Only time will tell if Exotic's marriage will prevail.