More On: Carole Baskin
'Tiger King' bill banning big cat ownership passes in House
Carole Baskin says finding missing former husband would be ‘huge relief’
‘Sexy Tiger King’ Halloween costumes are here at last
Carole Baskin’s ‘Dancing with the Stars’ debut performance falls short
Family of Carole Baskin’s missing ex-husband airs ad during ‘DWTS’
Will signatures and power of attorney documents related to Don Lewis, the long-missing second husband of “Tiger King” star Carole Baskin, appear to be forgeries — a fact that could play into a possible trial, according to a new report. “It’s not a difficult call,” handwriting expert Thomas Vastrick told Jackson, Mississippi’s Clarion-Ledger of the …
Will signatures and power of attorney documents related to Don Lewis, the long-missing second husband of “Tiger King” star Carole Baskin, appear to be forgeries — a fact that could play into a possible trial, according to a new report.
“It’s not a difficult call,” handwriting expert Thomas Vastrick told Jackson, Mississippi’s Clarion-Ledger of the apparent forgeries.
Lewis’ signature on the two documents appears to have been traced from his marriage record, said Vastrick, who also noted that the signatures of the witnesses and the notary on both documents are also identical, suggesting that at least one — and possibly both — of those was forged.
Fellow handwriting expert Willa Smith concurred with the assessment, telling the Clarion-Ledger that Lewis’ signature was “the product of tracing.”
Lewis, a multimillionaire who co-owned a Tampa, Florida wildlife sanctuary with Baskin, vanished without a trace in the summer of 1997.
Lewis was never found, nor was any concrete evidence of foul play, but he was declared legally dead in 2002, clearing the way for Baskin — the last known person to see him alive — to inherit his estate.
Baskin was never charged with a crime, but the case remains open and scrutiny ramped up with the release of Netflix’s smash series “Tiger King.”
The series focuses on the feud between self-styled animal activist Baskin and Joe Exotic, a flamboyant Oklahoma zookeeper and failed presidential candidate convicted in 2019 of animal abuse and plotting a hit on Baskin.
Amid the spat, Exotic and his camp have repeatedly accused Baskin of killing Lewis and feeding his remains to her tigers.
The discovery of the apparent forgeries could be “powerful evidence” in a potential criminal case, an expert told The Clarion-Ledger.
“It ties a bow on what could be her scheme to get him [Lewis] out of the picture,” Matt Steffey, a professor at the Mississippi College of Law, told the paper. “She has motive anyway, but this ups the stakes.”
Lewis’ family had voiced concerns since his disappearance that the documents had been doctored, and the claim has been probed by Sunshine State authorities, but the Florida attorney general’s office ruled that the five-year statute of limitations on forgery had expired, according to The Clarion-Ledger.
Baskin could not be reached for comment by The Clarion-Ledger.
