Former Oklahoma gubernatorial candidate found guilty in murder-for-hire plot
A former Oklahoma gubernatorial candidate and zookeeper was convicted Tuesday in an attempted murder-for-hire plot, according to the Associated Press.
A federal jury convicted Joseph Allen “Joe Exotic” Maldonado-Passage of trying to arrange the killing of Florida animal sanctuary founder Carole Baskin after she criticized his treatment of animals.
Baskin had previously sued Maldonado-Passage successfully in 2011 for trademark infringement and in 2013 won a judgment ordering him to pay $1 million in, according to Oklahoma station KFOR.
After arguments with Baskin, Maldonado-Passage offered an undercover FBI agent $10,000 to kill Baskin.
Maldonado-Passage has said he was never serious about wanting Baskin dead.
He was also found guilty in the deaths of five tigers and breaking the Endangered Species Act by selling and offering to sell tiger cubs, according to the AP.
Maldonado-Passage finished third in the 2018 Libertarian primary for governor and was a 2016 write-in candidate for president.
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