Illinois Has Its Own Tiger King Story

CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- Before there was the Tiger King, Chicago’s western suburbs had its own exotic zoo owner who ended up in trouble with the law.

Netflix has released “Tiger King:  Murder, Mayhem and Madness” at a time when we’re all forced to shelter-in-place and a lot of people have taken to it.

It’s a documentary about a man known as “Joe Exotic” a gay, gun-toting, former exotic animal zoo owner, who has been sentenced to 22 years in prison for hiring someone to try to kill Big Cat Rescue owner Carole Baskin.

Sound somewhat familiar? 

In west suburban Batavia, in the late 90’s there was Land O'Lorin Exotic Wildlife Haven.  In 2000, owner Lorin Womack was arrested on a charge of solicitation to commit murder for hire. He was found guilty of trying to hire an undercover Aurora police officer to kill his girlfriend’s estranged husband.

In 2001, Womack was sentenced to 26 years in prison. 

Womack is in the Dixon Correctional Center and his projected parole date is this Christmas Eve.