'Tiger King' Joe Exotic plans to marry fellow inmate in prison, hopes they 'can walk out‘ together

"Tiger King" star Joe Exotic announced he is engaged to a fellow prison inmate.

The 63-year-old Netflix personality, incarcerated at the Federal Medical Center in Fort Worth, Texas, shared the news of his engagement in a post on X, formerly Twitter, Monday.

"Meet Jorge Marquez he is 33. He is so amazing and is from Mexico. Now, the quest of getting married in prison and getting him asylum or we be leaving America when we both get out. Either way, I wish I would have met him long ago," Exotic, whose real name is Joseph Maldonado-Passage, wrote alongside a photo of himself with his fiancé.

During a phone call Wednesday from prison with Fox News Digital, Exotic shared details about his romance with Marquez, their plans for a prison wedding and his hopes for their future together.

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"From the very day we met, we've spent every minute of every day together," he said. "And it just clicked so fast and so sincere, and it's amazing.

"I wished I would have met Jorge months ago or a couple of years ago, but God had a plan, I guess."

The media personality recalled that he and Marquez met five months ago when the 33-year-old, who Exotic said is a Mexican citizen and entered the United States illegally, was transferred from the South Texas ICE Processing Center in Pearsall, Texas.

"From the very day we met, we've spent every minute of every day together. And it just clicked so fast and so sincere, and it's amazing."

— Joe Exotic

While speaking with Fox News Digital, Exotic detailed the steps he and Marquez must take to get married in prison. 

"We filled out our application yesterday and turned it in," Exotic said. "And part of the application process was we had to write letters to the prison and explain why we wanted to get married. And then we filled out the marriage license application for the county and turned it all in.

"And [all] I can do is pray to God that the chaplain and the warden and the captain approve it."

Exotic noted that "heterosexuals get married in here all day long. But I'm hoping that they respect our constitutional right, and we will still uphold and abide by the rules and the law." 

Exotic went on to describe what his days are like with Marquez at the Federal Medical Center.

"We cook breakfast and lunch and dinner together," Exotic said of himself and Marquez. "Because the prison that we're in … is not like a prison, OK? It's more like a college campus. There's no bars, and there's no doors.

"You have to live in dorms. And, right now, he lives in a different one than I do. And then we spend some mornings, some nights together, during the day. So, I don't think the prison will have any problem.

"We haven't caused any problems for the prison, so I don't see any reason why they would object to approving our application."

Exotic was convicted in 2019 on charges that included trying to hire two different men to kill his rival, animal welfare activist Carole Baskin. Both were featured in the 2020 Netflix series "Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem, and Madness."

The former zookeeper was also convicted on charges of falsifying wildlife records and violating the Endangered Species Act by killing five tigers and selling tiger cubs across state lines.

Exotic was sentenced in January 2020 to 22 years in prison, but a federal judge reduced his sentence by a year in January 2022. 

However, USA Today reported Wednesday that Exotic's projected release date is Sept. 2, 2029, citing the Texas Department of Corrections online records. Exotic lost his appeal to have his sentence reduced by eight years during a 2022 resentencing. He filed a second appeal in July 2024.

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In his interview with Fox News Digital, Exotic said Marquez is scheduled to be released in May 2025. 

"I should have answers on my appeal by then, actually by March," he said. "Whether or not they're going to let me go and/or if they're going to recharge me and going to take me back to trial. Since their witnesses are no good anymore, and they can't take me back to trial because they ain't got no case because everybody admitted that it was all made up.

"So, hopefully, with God's will or a president's will, maybe we can walk out of here together."

Meanwhile, Exotic expressed his hope he and Marquez will be able to tie the knot in the next couple of months.

"Jorge is hoping for December the 12th," Exotic said. "I let him pick the date.

"Because I've been married three times, right? Officially, I've been married two. I've been down that road, and I got to do that. And this is his first time, so I let him pick the date and be able to pick some of the things out, you know?"

Exotic told Fox News Digital the two would like to have some of their fellow prison inmates as guests at their wedding. 

"According to the rules for straight people, they're allowed three from each side," he said.

Exotic noted he and Marquez "get along with everyone" at the prison, so narrowing down the list might be difficult.

"There's 1,400 of them," he said. 

In a statement to Fox News Digital, a representative for the Federal Bureau of Prisons said, "For privacy, safety, and security reasons, we do not comment on the conditions of confinement for any individual in our custody.  For information concerning marriage requests, please see the Federal Bureau of Prisons (FBOP) Program Statement 5326.05, 'Marriages of Inmates' found here https://www.bop.gov/policy/progstat/5326_005.pdf."

The former tiger wrangler previously married Travis Maldonado and John Finlay in an unofficial three-way ceremony in 2013. After Finlay ended his relationship with the pair, Exotic and Maldonado officially married in 2015.

In October 2017, Maldonado, who struggled with drug problems, died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Maldonado's death was featured in "Tiger King."

Exotic went on to marry Dillon Passage in December of that year, but the two finalized their divorce in January 2023.

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As he awaits the result of his appeal, Exotic told Fox News Digital being engaged to Marquez is "amazing."

"I'm going on seven years in here even with the evidence that we have that proves I'm innocent," he said. "I've still gotta go through this slow process.

"I'm waiting for my appeal to go through, but this gave me a new spark in life.

"And it's just an amazing feeling," Exotic added. "I haven't felt this way since Travis died in 2017."

During his interview with Fox News Digital, Exotic explained he and Marquez have a language barrier, but they are working to overcome it.

"I've always had this fantasy, I guess you could call it, or a dream to be able to meet someone from another country and have to learn their language and they have to learn our language. And we have that barrier right now.

"Because he didn't speak English at all," Exotic added. "And I carry a Spanish book around with me all day long. And that's how we're teaching each other to communicate. And I think it makes our bond even stronger because of learning how to express and communicate."

Exotic described Marquez as "very, very affectionate, very open, honest."

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"He doesn't have a drug history, a drug problem, doesn't have a drinking problem," Exotic said. "And the perfect person, actually. Thirty-three years old, you know, he's a little younger than I am. And that doesn't seem to bother anything.

"His family is all gung-ho that we're getting married."

Exotic also explained that Marquez has applied for asylum in the U.S. A press release  provided to Fox News Digital by Exotic's representative said, "Joe Exotic has retained Francisco Hernandez of Fort Worth, Texas, to represent Jorge and help file asylum paperwork."

The press release noted that they were requesting asylum for Marquez "due to the violence in Mexico and threats because Jorge is gay."

As he mentioned in his Instagram post, Exotic told Fox News Digital he and Marquez plan to move to Mexico if the asylum request is not granted. He said they were considering somewhere around the state of Chihuahua or Cozumel.

Exotic told Fox News Digital he was also hopeful President Biden would pardon him before the president leaves office in January 2025. 

He also said he would be seeking a pardon either from Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump or Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris, depending on the outcome of the 2024 election.

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Exotic also asked his fans to lend their support to him and Marquez.

"He's a sweet guy," Exotic said of Marquez. "He's done nothing criminally wrong other than being born in the wrong place. Get on joeexoticofficial.com. Look at the evidence link. How innocent I really am and how these people admit that they all lied. And I'm sitting in prison"