READ: The Homeland Security Document That 'Tiger King' Star Carole Baskin Claims PROVES Her Ex-Husband Is Alive
Jan. 19 2023, Published 4:30 p.m. ET
RadarOnline.com can exclusively reveal the bombshell Homeland Security document that Carole Baskin claimed proves her ex-husband Jack Don Lewis is alive in Costa Rica.
The 61-year-old Tiger King star has insisted for years that Lewis vanished without a trace in 1997. He was later declared legally dead in 2002, and many viewers of the Netflix docuseries have remained convinced that Baskin had something to do with his disappearance.
Baskin claimed she became aware of the government letter titled "Homeland Security Investigation Report" which offered fresh insight.
Baskin exclusively provided RadarOnline.com with a copy of the letter which shows Lewis was under investigation and later cleared of wildlife smuggling.
"This investigation has revealed no evidence of wildlife smuggling on the part of Jack Lewis," the undated one-page letter states. "Lewis owns property in Costa Rica and has traveled (there) regularly."
Baskin reported Lewis missing in August 1997 telling Tampa's Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office that he "left his families (sic) residence and has not been seen or heard from since." His van was found abandoned in a nearby county and investigators determined there was no evidence of foul play.
"Hillsborough S.O. Detectives learned that Lewis had recently purchased a $1.5-million-dollar life insurance policy," the letter states.
"(Redacted) working in conjunction with SAC/New Orleans S/A (redacted) has learned that Don Lewis is currently alive and well in Costa Rica," the letter states. "A (redacted) has learned that Lewis has loaned money to various officials in Costa Rica and could live quite well on the interest earned….."
The letter notes an agent contacted an official from the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office about Lewis' whereabouts because of the media attention his disappearance generated — and unfounded allegations that Baskin may have murdered him.
But according to the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office, there is no evidence Baskin's ex has been found "alive and well" and the Florida lawmen still have an open missing person case for Lewis.
"We have not received any communication from our federal partners that confirms the location of missing person Mr. Don Lewis," Fentress Fountain, the public information officer for the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office, told the New York Post on Thursday.
"The investigation into Don Lewis' disappearance remains a priority for the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, as do all missing person cases," Fountain added.
When asked about the Sheriff's Office's comments, Baskin exclusively tells RadarOnline.com in an email: "I'm not interested in doing an interview."
But then she added, "You should watch Tiger King 2 so you can see the Sheriff's deputy refusing to talk about anything having to do with Costa Rica and saying, (and I'm paraphrasing here) that he's trying to 'overcome' the Homeland Security report. Why would he, or anyone else who was in or watched Tiger King, think he knows better than Homeland Security?"