Joe Exotic, star of the mindbending Netflix documentary series Tiger King exists in a dark and surreal alternative universe to the rest of us. He is currently serving out a 22-year jail sentence for animal abuse and involvement in a murder-for-hire plot.
It almost felt inevitable to learn that Mr Exotic is currently coronavirus isolation in prison in Texas. Of course the two biggest stories in the world - Tgier King and Coronavirus - would have to converage. Exotic had recently been relocated from a prison facility with people who had contracted the virus, and staff in his current prison felt he needed to isolate from the other prisoners.
There's confusion as to whether Mr Exotic has actually contracted the disease. A Texas website said he is in a prison medical center while another reported that he had the disease.
At the moment, all we know for sure is that he is isolating. The news was confirmed to the US media by Exotic's husband, Dillon.
"We speak like three to five times every day, but since he's been moved to this new facility, they are putting him on a Covid-19 isolation because of the previous jail he was at, there were cases," he said to an American entertainment reporter.
"I've yet to speak to him since he moved."
Dillon said he'll stand by Joe come what may: "I do love Joe. He's been there for me through my darkest times. I'm not just gonna dip out and abandon him when he needs me most."
American prisons have been on the frontline of the Covid-19 outbreak in the United States. This week, all prisoners in US federal prisons and staff were put into quarantine.
There are over 225,000 Covid-19 cases in the United States.
