Joe Exotic is looking for an unlikely ally as he attempts to get out of prison: Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow.
Exotic, whose real name is Joseph Maldonado, took to social media asking Burrow for his help while also expressing frustration at the Bengals star using his Tiger King nickname.
Joe Exotic @joe_exoticHere's my letter to <a href="">@JoeyB</a> 🐅 Help stop this injustice done to me and then let's go keep animals from being in a cage together <a href="">#tigerking</a> <a href="">#freejoeexotic</a> <a href="">
The reality TV star, who rose to fame in 2020, is asking Burrow for $20,000 to hire attorneys to appeal his case.
"I see the news, magazines as well as yourself calling you the Tiger King," Exotic wrote. "Everyone in the world is exploiting me and my trademarks while I sit innocent in an American Federal Prison. I have been the Tiger King before you got out of high school. Tiger King is my trademark and intellectual property. My life has been destroyed ... while you all ride fame and attention off my life's work."
A jury convicted Exotic of hiring two men to murder Carole Baskin and animal abuse charges in 2019. He was sentenced to 22 years in prison, which was reduced to 21 years upon appeal.
Fans began calling Burrow the Tiger King early in his career during the height of the documentary's popularity. Burrow has pushed back on the nickname, saying he does not like being associated with the documentary due to the poor treatment of animals.
Burrow has not responded to the letter.
