An Illinois man will reportedly have his day in court as he faces several misdemeanor charges in connection with taking a tiger cub into a bar.
It reportedly happened at least twice.
John Basile, 58, of Lockport Township, was charged with two counts of reckless conduct and two counts of possession of a dangerous animal after he allegedly took a tiger cub into Uncle Richie’s Bar. It reportedly happened once in December 2013 and once in February 2014.
In the first incident, a woman reportedly told police the tiger bit her. In the latter incident, Basile reportedly claimed the cub was there to help promote a “Wild Fest” fundraiser for the local high school.
Basile is listed as President of Big Run Wolf Ranch, a wildlife conservation facility in Lockport. The facility’s Facebook page did not appear to be operating, but there were occasional message posted from their Twitter page. All of their online posts list the facility as a “non-profit, federally licensed, educational program which specializes in education and conservation of North American wildlife.”
Trial in connection with the February incident was set for July 20, 2015.
