Phoenix man who tried selling tiger cub on social media gets probation after pleading guilty
Jul 28, 2023, 2:00 PM
Carlos Castro Alcaraz, the Phoenix, Arizona, man who tried to sell a tiger cub over social media, was sentenced to probation Thursday, July 27, 2023. (Maricopa County Sheriff's Office Photo and Phoenix Police Screenshot)
(Maricopa County Sheriff's Office Photo and Phoenix Police Screenshot)
PHOENIX — A Phoenix man who tried to sell a tiger cub over social media earlier this year was sentenced to probation Thursday, authorities said.
In addition to two years of supervised probation, Carlos Castro Alcaraz was ordered to pay $6,000 in restitution for the animal’s care, the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office said.
He also must forfeit interest in an alligator and 12 snapping turtles that were seized along with the tiger when he was arrested in January.
In February, a grand jury indicted Castro Alcaraz with the class 6 felony of unlawfully bartering, selling or offering to sell wildlife. Class 6 is the least severe type of felony under Arizona law.
He entered a guilty plea in June.
How did Phoenix police catch man selling tiger cub?
Police said he was offering to sell a tiger cub for $25,000 on social media.
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After learning about the proposal, officers posing as potential buyers contacted Castro Alcaraz on Jan. 23.
They gathered enough information to obtain a search warrant at a residence near Baseline Road and 27th Avenue, where the animals were located.
What happened to the tiger after she was seized?
The Southwest Wildlife Conservation Center in Scottsdale took care of the cub, who was named Indy, for several months.
She weighed 23 pounds when she was seized and grew to 90 pounds by May, when was relocated to a permanent home at the The Wildcat Sanctuary in Sandstone, Minnesota.
The Wildcat Sanctuary also is home to big cats seized by the Department of Justice that appeared in the Netflix show “Tiger King.”
