Baskin’s husband went missing in 1997 and was declared dead in 2002
(Picture: Getty Images)One of the biggest unsolved mysteries taken from Tiger King was what on earth happened to Carole Baskin’s husband Don Lewis?
Lewis disappeared in 1997 when he left his home in Florida. He was later declared dead later in 2002 with no evidence of foul play. Authorities believe he went missing on his own.
While Joe Exotic’s theories sent social media into a whirlwind – with unfounded speculations that Baskin killed her husband and fed him to the tigers – the 60-year-old has always adamantly denied any involvement.
Baskin, CEO of Big Cat Rescue, turned to Reddit with a candid ‘Ask Me Anything’ to clear up any social media speculation ahead of the release of Tiger King 2 – and to promote her new show Carole Baskin’s Cage Fight. When asked whether she enjoys true crime documentaries, she responded: “I love a good mystery. I just wish the main one in my life had been solved by now.”
The most popular question on the thread racked up over 12,000 upvotes. It read: “What do you think happened to your missing husband?”
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“Don loved to fly and was looking to buy ultralights and experimental planes. I believe Don crashed a small experimental plane or ultralight into the Gulf for a number of reasons,” she said.
“He wasn’t licensed to fly, yet did all the time. He couldn’t file a flight plan and had to take off from closed airports to evade detection.
“He had to fly under 200 feet to stay off the radar which means he would typically fly out over the Gulf because the air is smoother there, whereas over land there are up and down drafts that will crash you at the height.
“Since phone records indicated he was planning to go to Texas, and his van was found at a small private airstrip and we have never found Don or wreckage, I think this was the most likely scenario.”
Despite her tumultuous legal battle with Tiger King 2, Baskin told E! News that she would be tuning in to watch.
She said: “I have to tune in because there were so many lies that were told about me so effectively in Tiger King that I know I’m going to be called to defend myself again on Tiger King 2.”
Tiger King 2 returns to Netflix on Wednesday (November 17).
