Many Countries Favor Specific Religions, Officially or Unofficially
Islam is the most common state religion, but many governments give privileges to Christianity
More than 80 countries favor a specific religion, either as an official, government-endorsed religion or by affording one religion preferential treatment over other faiths, according to a new Pew Research Center analysis of data covering 199 countries and territories around the world.1
Islam is the most common government-endorsed faith, with 27 countries (including most in the Middle East-North Africa region) officially enshrining Islam as their state religion. By comparison, just 13 countries (including nine European nations) designate Christianity or a particular Christian denomination as their state religion.
But an additional 40 governments around the globe unofficially favor a particular religion, and in most cases the preferred faith is a branch of Christianity. Indeed, Christian churches receive preferential treatment in more countries – 28 – than any other unofficial but favored faith.
In some cases, state religions have roles that are largely ceremonial. But often the distinction comes with tangible advantages in terms of legal or tax status, ownership of real estate or other property, and access to financial support from the state. In addition, countries with state-endorsed (or “established”) faiths tend to more severely regulate religious practice, including placing restrictions or bans on minority religious groups.
In 10 countries, the state either tightly regulates all religious institutions or is actively hostile to religion in general. These countries include China, Cuba, North Korea, Vietnam and several former Soviet republics – places where government officials seek to control worship practices, public expressions of religion and political activity by religious groups.
Most governments around the globe, however, are generally neutral toward religion. More than 100 countries and territories included in the study have no official or preferred religion as of 2015. These include countries like the United States that may give benefits or privileges to religious groups, but generally do so without systematically favoring a specific group over others.
These are among the key findings of a new Pew Research Center analysis of country constitutions and basic laws as well as secondary sources from governmental and nongovernmental organizations.
States with no official or preferred religion seek to avoid giving tangible benefits to one religious group over others (although they may evenhandedly provide benefits to many religious groups). For example, the U.S. government gives tax exemptions to religious organizations under rules that apply equally to all denominations. Many countries in this category have constitutional language calling for freedom of religion, although that language alone is not enough to include a country in this group; coders must determine that these countries do not systematically favor one or more religions over others.
ALLEGATIONS OF BLOOD SUCKING IN SOME PARTS OF THE COUNTRY
President Peter Mutharika: Values every life of every Malawian as very precious
While His Excellency President Arthur Peter Mutharika was attending the 72nd United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York recently, he received reports of very distressing and agonizing allegations of blood sucking incidents in some parts of the country.
The President also received reports of very disturbing instances of mob justice carried on persons suspected to be connected to the alleged blood sucking incidents.
Understandably, due to these unfortunate incidents, most people have not been at peace in their communities and homes. This development has been of grave concern to The President and the entire Government.
The President has been even more deeply touched that some people have been killed for being suspected to be among the supposed perpetrators of the feared blood sucking incidents.
His Excellency President Mutharika values every life of every Malawian as very precious.
As soon as The President started receiving these reports, he directed the police to mobilise in every concerned community in order to ensure that there is enhanced security. The President also sent Cabinet Ministers, traditional leaders and requested religious leaders to reach out to the communities with sensitisation and prayers. Above all, the Government has put in place mechanisms and instituted an intensive investigation for us to get to the bottom of the matter.
Over the past week since The President returned, he has listened to the fears of the people as he met different levels of leaders who have been to the communities.
The President would like to ask the public to keep calm as the Government works to get to the bottom of the matter. The President also appeals to all concerned to remember to love one another and desist from taking the law in their hands whenever they are dealing with a suspect.
The President will personally visit the communities that have been affected. On Friday, 13thOctober, The President will visit the people of Mulanje. On Monday, 16th October, The President will visit the people of Phalombe. On Tuesday, 17th October, The President will visit the people of Chiradzulu.
The President urges all to remain united and continue believing that God did not give us the spirit of fear but the spirit of courage to stay focused in developing our country.
Throughout the afternoon, an WC-135W Constant Phoenix aircraft performs touch ‘n go landing exercises Feb. 12 at Offutt Air Force Base, Neb. (U.S. Air Force photo/Josh Plueger)
FILE PHOTO — The WC-135W Constant Phoenix aircraft collects particulate and gaseous debris from the accessible regions of the atmosphere in support of the Limited Nuclear Test Ban Treaty of 1963. (U.S. Air Force photo)
Mission
The WC-135W Constant Phoenix atmospheric collection aircraft supports national level consumers by collecting particulate and gaseous effluents and debris from accessible regions of the atmosphere in support of the Limited Nuclear Test Ban Treaty of 1963.
Features
The aircraft is a modified C-135B or EC-135C platform. The Constant Phoenix’s modifications are primarily related to its on-board atmospheric collection suite, which allows the mission crew to detect radioactive “clouds” in real time. The aircraft is equipped with external flow-through devices to collect particulates on filter paper and a compressor system for whole air samples collected in holding spheres.
The cockpit crew is from the 45th Reconnaissance Squadron at Offutt Air Force Base, Neb., and special equipment operators are assigned to Det. 1, Air Force Technical Applications Center at Offutt AFB.
Background
General Dwight D. Eisenhower commissioned the Constant Phoenix program on Sept. 16, 1947, when he charged the Army Air Forces with the overall responsibility for detecting atomic explosions anywhere in the world. In September 1949, a WB-29 flying between Alaska and Japan detected nuclear debris from Russia’s first atomic test–an event thought not possible until mid-1950.
Beginning in August 1950, WB-50 aircraft were converted for the air-sampling mission over a two-year period. WC-135 aircraft began replacing the WB-50s in December 1965 and became the workhorse of the atmospheric collection program.
Air sampling missions were routinely conducted over the Far East, Indian Ocean, Bay of Bengal, Mediterranean Sea, the Polar regions, and off the coasts of South America and Africa. The WC-135W played a major role in tracking radioactive debris from the Soviet Union’s Chernobyl nuclear plant disaster.
Currently the air-sampling mission supports the Limited Nuclear Test Ban Treaty of 1963, which prohibits any nation from above ground nuclear weapons testing. WC-135s are currently the only aircraft in the inventory conducting air-sampling operations.
General Characteristics Primary function: Air sampling and collection operations Contractor: Boeing Aerospace Co. Power Plant:WC-135C, Four Pratt & Whitney TF33-P9 turbofans without thrust reversers; WC-135W, Four Pratt & Whitney TF33-P-5 turbofans with thrust reversers Thrust: 16,050 pounds each engine Wingspan: 130 feet, 10 inches (39.8 meters) Length: 139 feet, 11 inches (42.5 meter) Height: 42 feet (12.8 meters) Weight: 120,170 pounds (54,508 kilograms) Maximum Takeoff Weight: 300,500 pounds (136,304 kilograms) Fuel Capacity: 130,000 pounds (58,967 kilograms) Speed: 403 miles per hour (350 knots) Ceiling: 40,000 feet (12,192 feet) Range: 4,000 nautical miles Crew: Varies with mission Unit Cost: unavailable Initial operating capability: December 1965 Inventory: Active force, 2; ANG, 0; Reserve, 0
For the latest tracking info, follow CivMilAir (@CivMilAir) on Twitter.
Constant Phoenix – Nuke sniffer
An hour on, still pinging away with no location…
Background: Project BLUE BOOK – Unidentified Flying Objects (UFOs)
Beginning in 1947, the United States Government officially launched an investigation into UFOs and assigned the United States Air Force to conduct formal studies. The longest investigation was called Project Blue Book and it was officially terminated in 1969.
U.S. Air Force Fact Sheet: Concerning UFOs and Project BLUE BOOK
The following is a copy of the US Air Force Fact Sheet distributed by Wright-Patterson AFB in January 1985.
UFOs & PROJECT BLUE BOOK
On December 17, 1969, the Secretary of the Air Force announced the termination of Project BLUE BOOK, the Air Force program for the investigation of UFOs.
From 1947 to 1969, a total of 12,618 sightings were reported to Project BLUE BOOK. Of these, 701 remain “Unidentified.” The project was headquartered at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, whose personnel no longer receive, document or investigate UFO reports.
The decision to discontinue UFO investigations was based on an evaluation of a report prepared by the University of Colorado entitled, “Scientific Study of Unidentified Flying Objects;” a review of the University of Colorado’s report by the National Academy of Sciences; past UFO studies and Air Force experience investigating UFO reports during the 40s, 50s, and 60s.
As a result of these investigations and studies and experience gained from investigating UFO reports since 1948, the conclusions of Project BLUE BOOK are:
(1) No UFO reported, investigated, and evaluated by the Air Force has ever given any indication of threat to our national security.
(2) There has been no evidence submitted to or discovered by the Air Force that sightings categorized as “unidentified” represent technological developments or principles beyond the range of present-day scientific knowledge.
(3) There has been no evidence indicating that sightings categorized as “unidentified” are extraterrestrial vehicles.
With the termination of Project BLUE BOOK, the Air Force regulations establishing and controlling the program for investigating and analyzing UFOs were rescinded. Documentation regarding the former BLUE BOOK investigation has been permanently transferred to the Military Reference Branch, National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, DC 20408, and is available for public review and analysis.
Since Project BLUE BOOK was closed, nothing has happened to indicate that the Air Force ought to resume investigating UFOS. Because of the considerable cost to the Air Force in the past, and the tight funding of Air Force needs today, there is no likelihood the Air Force will become involved with UFO investigation again.
There are a number of universities and professional scientific organizations, such as the American Association for the Advancement of Science, which have considered UFO phenomena during periodic meetings and seminars. In addition, a list of private organizations interested in aerial phenomena may be found in Gayle’s Encyclopedia of Associations (edition 8, vol-. 1, pp. 432-433). Such timely review of the situation by private groups ensures that sound evidence will not be overlooked by the scientific community.
A person calling the base to report a UFO is advised to contact a private or professional organization (as mentioned above) or to contact a local law enforcement agency if the caller feels his or her public safety is endangered.
Periodically, it is erroneously stated that the remains of extraterrestrial visitors are or have been stored at Wright-Patterson AFB. There are not now nor have there ever been, any extraterrestrial visitors or equipment on Wright-Patterson Air Force Base.
The Condon Committee and the “Scientific Study of Unidentified Flying Objects”
As stated in the US Air Force fact sheet, the decision to discontinue UFO investigations was based on a report prepared by the University of Colorado entitled, “Scientific Study of Unidentified Flying Objects” and a review of the report by the National Academy of Sciences.
The National Capital Area Skeptics (NCAS), founded in 1987, is an independent, nonprofit, educational and scientific membership organization that promotes critical thinking and scientific understanding. They are advocates for science and reason, actively promoting the scientific method, rational inquiry, and education.
Over a 2-year period, from 1998 to 1999, NCAS Board Member Jim Giglio obtained copyright permission from the University of Colorado and lead a team of 10 NCAS members, who worked for several months to scan and proof the text of the 1465-page “Scientific Study of Unidentified Flying Objects,” and created web pages to put it on the NCAS.org web site. Also known as “The Condon Report,” it remains the largest (and arguably the only) truly scientific examination of the UFO issue ever conducted. This landmark reference, of value to all who are interested in UFO claims, had long been out of print and difficult to find. The entire reference is available online in the NCAS Electronic Library.
Under contract No. 44620-67-C-0035 With the United States Air Force
Dr. Edward U. Condon, Scientific Director [1968]
Internet Edition Prepared by National Capital Area Skeptics (NCAS)
District of Columbia – Maryland – Virginia (USA) [ www.ncas.org ]
With the Permission of The Regents of the University of Colorado
Release 1 – January 1999
Courtesy NCAS: The Colorado Project
The Scientific Study of Unidentified Flying Objects was performed at the University of Colorado between 1966 and 1968, with physics Professor Edward U. Condon as its scientific director. It is frequently referred to as the “Condon Report” or the “Colorado Project Report”. To this day, the work carried out under Dr. Condon’s direction represents the largest single scientific project ever undertaken in relation to the UFO problem. In the opinion of a sizeable majority of mainstream scientists, its principal conclusion has stood the test of time:
Careful consideration of the record as it is available to us leads us to conclude that further extensive study of UFOs probably cannot be justified in the expectation that science will be advanced thereby.
It has been argued that this lack of contribution to science is due to the fact that very little scientific effort has been put on the subject. We do not agree. We feel that the reason that there has been very little scientific study of the subject is that those scientists who are most directly concerned, astronomers, atmospheric physicists, chemists, and psychologists, having had ample opportunity to look into the matter, have individually decided that UFO phenomena do not offer a fruitful field in which to look for major scientific discoveries. (From section I of the report)
Anyone familiar with the popular media and the Internet is likely aware that a very substantial fraction of the general public would disagree with this conclusion. Unfortunately, the virtual disappearance of the Condon report from general circulation makes it practically impossible for the public to evaluate the evidence that supports it, or to weigh the Colorado work against the claims of its critics.
To remedy this situation, the National Capital Area Skeptics is pleased to present, with the permission of the Regents of the University of Colorado, the NCAS Internet edition of Scientific Study of Unidentified Flying Objects. Our volunteer group, under the tireless direction of Jim Giglio, has worked for more than a year to bring this document to the web. We are confident that the effort will prove worthwhile, and that the document will prove useful in the rational evaluation of many aspects of the UFO issue.
Paul Jaffe
January 1999
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The Condon Report is more than 1400 pages long and consists of 59 case studies, more than 100 figures, 65 pages of photographs, and numerous tables.
Below is a sampling of what one will find in the report:
Cases with a natural explanation:
Upon first glance, so many photos appear to have merit. The task of the Condon Committee was to study these photos and eliminate what they could. The idea held by so many that photographs don’t lie had to be addressed. The study demonstrated how many times what the camera captured was a simple case of natural phenomena.
Other cases discussed were explained by meteors, stars Venus, Jupiter, aircraft lights and weather balloons, but with the absence of photographic evidence. Witness descriptions and drawings are provided when available.
Cases based on fabrication of evidence:
Fabrications/deliberate hoaxes were a big problem. Often, witnesses contacted did not want to speak any further with investigators. Sometimes, the witness would admit the fraud. The study presents through photographs how easy it is to create a convincing photographic record. The below two photos were deliberately fabricated by the authors of the study.
Conclusion: This is one of the few UFO reports in which all factors investigated, geometric, psychological, and physical appear to be consistent with the assertion that an extraordinary flying object, silvery, metallic, disk-shaped, tens of meters in diameter, and evidently artificial, flew within sight of two witnesses. It cannot be said that the evidence positively rules out a fabrication, although there are some physical factors such as the accuracy of certain photometric measures of the original negatives which argue against a fabrication.
The Final Report of the Scientific Study of Unidentified Flying Objects was originally copyrighted in 1968 by the Regents of the University of Colorado, a body corporate. It was subsequently published in reports of the United States Air Force and other governmental agencies and was published commercially by Bantam Books (currently out of print).
Command and Control: THE LONG-HIDDEN STORY OF THE DAY OUR LUCK ALMOST RAN OUT
From Robert Kenner, the director of the groundbreaking film Food, Inc., comes Command and Control, the long-hidden story of a deadly accident at a Titan II missile complex in Damascus, Arkansas in 1980.
Based on the critically-acclaimed book by Eric Schlosser, this chilling documentary exposes the terrifying truth about the management of America’s nuclear arsenal and shows what can happen when the weapons built to protect us threaten to destroy us.
Filmed in a decommissioned Titan II missile silo in Arizona, the documentary features the minute-by-minute accounts of Air Force personnel, weapon designers, and first responders who were on the scene that night.
Command and Control reveals the unlikely chain of events that caused the accident and the feverish efforts to prevent the explosion of a ballistic missile carrying the most powerful nuclear warhead ever built by the United States – a warhead 600 times more powerful than the bomb that destroyed Hiroshima.
Woven through the Damascus story is a riveting history of America’s nuclear weapons program, from World War II through the Cold War, much of it based on recently declassified documents.
A cautionary tale of freak accidents, near misses, human fallibility and extraordinary heroism, Command and Control forces viewers to confront the great dilemma that the U.S. has faced since the dawn of the nuclear age: how do you manage weapons of mass destruction without being destroyed by them?
The Norwegian Nobel Committee awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for 2017 to the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN). The organization is receiving the award for its work to draw attention to the catastrophic humanitarian consequences of any use of nuclear weapons and for its ground-breaking efforts to achieve a treaty-based prohibition of such weapons.
The International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) is a coalition of non-governmental organizations in one hundred countries promoting adherence to and implementation of the United Nations nuclear weapon ban treaty. This landmark global agreement was adopted in New York on 7 July 2017.
Nuclear arsenals
Nine countries together possess around 15,000 nuclear weapons. The United States and Russia maintain roughly 1,800 of their nuclear weapons on high-alert status – ready to be launched within minutes of a warning. Most are many times more powerful than the atomic bombs dropped on Japan in 1945. A single nuclear warhead, if detonated on a large city, could kill millions of people, with the effects persisting for decades.
The failure of the nuclear powers to disarm has heightened the risk that other countries will acquire nuclear weapons. The only guarantee against the spread and use of nuclear weapons is to eliminate them without delay. Although the leaders of some nuclear-armed nations have expressed their vision for a nuclear-weapon-free world, they have failed to develop any detailed plans to eliminate their arsenals and are modernizing them.
How many nuclear weapons are there in the world?
COUNTRY
NUCLEAR PROGRAMME
SIZE OF ARSENAL
United States
The first country to develop nuclear weapons and the only country to have used them in war. It spends more on its nuclear arsenal than all other countries combined.
6,800 warheads
Russia
The second country to develop nuclear weapons. It has the largest arsenal of any country and is investing heavily in the modernization of its warheads and delivery systems.
7,000 warheads
United Kingdom
It maintains a fleet of four nuclear-armed submarines in Scotland, each carrying 16 Trident missiles. Its parliament voted in 2016 to overhaul its nuclear forces.
215 warheads
France
Most of its nuclear warheads are deployed on submarines equipped with M45 and M51 missiles. One boat is on patrol at all times. Some warheads are also deliverable by aircraft.
300 warheads
China
It has a much smaller arsenal than the US and Russia. Its warheads are deliverable by air, land and sea. It appears to be increasing the size of its arsenal at a slow pace.
270 warheads
India
It developed nuclear weapons in breach of non-proliferation commitments. It is increasing the size of its nuclear arsenal and enhancing its delivery capabilities.
110–120 warheads
Pakistan
It is making substantial improvements to its nuclear arsenal and associated infrastructure. It has increased the size of its nuclear arsenal in recent years.
120-130 warheads
Israel
It has a policy of ambiguity in relation to its nuclear arsenal, neither confirming nor denying its existence. As a result, there is little public information or debate about it.
80 warheads
North Korea
It has a fledgling nuclear weapons programme. Its arsenal probably comprises fewer than 10 warheads. It is not clear whether it has the capability to deliver them.
The Norwegian Nobel Committee has decided to award the Nobel Peace Prize for 2017 to the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN). The organization is receiving the award for its work to draw attention to the catastrophic humanitarian consequences of any use of nuclear weapons and for its ground-breaking efforts to achieve a treaty-based prohibition of such weapons.
We live in a world where the risk of nuclear weapons being used is greater than it has been for a long time. Some states are modernizing their nuclear arsenals, and there is a real danger that more countries will try to procure nuclear weapons, as exemplified by North Korea. Nuclear weapons pose a constant threat to humanity and all life on earth. Through binding international agreements, the international community has previously adopted prohibitions against land mines, cluster munitions and biological and chemical weapons. Nuclear weapons are even more destructive, but have not yet been made the object of a similar international legal prohibition.
Through its work, ICAN has helped to fill this legal gap. An important argument in the rationale for prohibiting nuclear weapons is the unacceptable human suffering that a nuclear war will cause. ICAN is a coalition of non-governmental organizations from around 100 different countries around the globe. The coalition has been a driving force in prevailing upon the world’s nations to pledge to cooperate with all relevant stakeholders in efforts to stigmatise, prohibit and eliminate nuclear weapons. To date, 108 states have made such a commitment, known as the Humanitarian Pledge.
Furthermore, ICAN has been the leading civil society actor in the endeavour to achieve a prohibition of nuclear weapons under international law. On 7 July 2017, 122 of the UN member states acceded to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. As soon as the treaty has been ratified by 50 states, the ban on nuclear weapons will enter into force and will be binding under international law for all the countries that are party to the treaty.
The Norwegian Nobel Committee is aware that an international legal prohibition will not in itself eliminate a single nuclear weapon, and that so far neither the states that already have nuclear weapons nor their closest allies support the nuclear weapon ban treaty. The Committee wishes to emphasize that the next steps towards attaining a world free of nuclear weapons must involve the nuclear-armed states. This year’s Peace Prize is therefore also a call upon these states to initiate serious negotiations with a view to the gradual, balanced and carefully monitored elimination of the almost 15,000 nuclear weapons in the world. Five of the states that currently have nuclear weapons – the USA, Russia, the United Kingdom, France and China – have already committed to this objective through their accession to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons of 1970. The Non-Proliferation Treaty will remain the primary international legal instrument for promoting nuclear disarmament and preventing the further spread of such weapons.
It is now 71 years since the UN General Assembly, in its very first resolution, advocated the importance of nuclear disarmament and a nuclear weapon-free world. With this year’s award, the Norwegian Nobel Committee wishes to pay tribute to ICAN for giving new momentum to the efforts to achieve this goal.
The decision to award the Nobel Peace Prize for 2017 to the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons has a solid grounding in Alfred Nobel’s will. The will specifies three different criteria for awarding the Peace Prize: the promotion of fraternity between nations, the advancement of disarmament and arms control and the holding and promotion of peace congresses. ICAN works vigorously to achieve nuclear disarmament. ICAN and a majority of UN member states have contributed to fraternity between nations by supporting the Humanitarian Pledge. And through its inspiring and innovative support for the UN negotiations on a treaty banning nuclear weapons, ICAN has played a major part in bringing about what in our day and age is equivalent to an international peace congress.
It is the firm conviction of the Norwegian Nobel Committee that ICAN, more than anyone else, has in the past year given the efforts to achieve a world without nuclear weapons a new direction and new vigour.
ACLU LAUNCHES 50-STATE PEOPLE POWER “LET PEOPLE VOTE” CAMPAIGN
The American Civil Liberties Union launched a new grassroots campaign in all 50 states and the District of Columbia to restore and expand Americans’ voting rights.
Courtesy ACLU Let People Vote Campaign.
“In too many parts of our country, people still face significant barriers to the ballot, often because of policies specifically designed to suppress voting. We are going on offense to fight back, and change state laws across the country to make it easier for people to vote,” said Faiz Shakir, ACLU National Political Director. “Our democracy wins when more people participate, so our newest People Power campaign will build a nationwide grassroots movement to expand access to the ballot.”
The Let People Vote campaign will consist of location-specific calls to action in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. These calls to action fall within four themes:
*election reforms to update the voting system and make voting easier
*countering voter suppression policies that make it harder for people to vote
*rights restoration proposals that give voting rights back to people who have repaid their debt to society
*redistricting reforms to stop corrosive partisan gerrymandering.
JOSEPH MALDONADO-PASSAGE, also known as Joseph Allen Maldonado, Joseph Allen Schreibvogel, and “Joe Exotic,” 55, formerly of Wynnewood, Oklahoma, has been convicted in a 21-count superseding indictment that includes the two previously charged murder-for-hire counts and also alleged nineteen wildlife crimes, including the alleged killing of five tigers and the illegal sale of tiger cubs, in violation of the Endangered Species Act and Lacey Act.
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Breaking news 9.7.18 Joe Exotic arrested in murder for hire plot:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Friday, September 7, 2018
Grand Jury Indicts “Joe Exotic” for Murder-For-Hire
OKLAHOMA CITY – JOSEPH MALDONADO-PASSAGE, also known as Joseph Allen Maldonado, Joseph Allen Schreibvogel, and “Joe Exotic,” 55, formerly of Wynnewood, Oklahoma, has been indicted on two counts of hiring a person to commit murder.
On September 5, 2018, a federal grand jury returned an indictment that accuses Maldonado-Passage of hiring an unnamed person in November 2017 to murder “Jane Doe” in Florida. According to the indictment, Maldonado-Passage gave the unnamed person $3,000 to travel from Oklahoma to South Carolina and then to Florida to carry out the murder. He allegedly agreed to pay thousands more after the deed. The indictment alleges Maldonado-Passage caused the person to travel to Dallas to get fake identification for use in the plot. According to the indictment, the person traveled from Oklahoma to South Carolina on November 26, 2017.
In a second count, the indictment alleges that beginning in July 2016, Maldonado-Passage repeatedly asked a different unnamed person to find someone to murder Jane Doe in exchange for money. The second person put Maldonado-Passage in contact with an undercover FBI agent. Maldonado-Passage met with the undercover agent on December 8, 2017, to discuss details of murdering Jane Doe.
Jane Doe did not suffer any physical harm.
The U.S. Marshals Service arrested Maldonado-Passage today in Gulf Breeze, Florida. He will make his initial appearance before a U.S. Magistrate Judge today in the Pensacola Division of the Northern District of Florida, followed by further proceedings in the Western District of Oklahoma.
If Maldonado-Passage is found guilty of murder-for-hire, he could be imprisoned on each count up to ten years. He would also be subject to up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000 per count.
This case is the result of an investigation by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Office of Law Enforcement and the FBI, with assistance from the U.S. Marshals Service. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Amanda Green and Charles W. Brown are prosecuting the case.
Joe Exotic’s 2016 Bid for President of the United States includes this video in which he promises he will not cut his hair nor change the way he dresses. Joe Exotic explains he is gay, legally married, has tried drugs and a little kinky sex, and is “broke as sh*t.”
A Short Biography
Legal Name: Joseph A Maldonado “Schreibvogel”
AKA: Joe Exotic and The Tiger King
Born in Garden City Kansas in 1963 where he lived and grew up on a farm until the age of 13.
Family moved to Wyoming at age 14, became volunteer firefighter. Inspired his love of animal rescue.
Family moved to Texas. Joe became an EMT (Emergency Medical Technician) and volunteered on a local ambulance service.
By age 19 he owned his own ambulance service and joined police force in Eastvale Texas.
Appointed Police Chief and went through the academy as the youngest Police Chief in Texas history.
Motor vehicle accident in 1985 and left police career.
In 1986 began working with exotic pets with largest exotic pet store in Texas.
In 1997 he founded the G.W. Exotic Animal Memorial Foundation for unwanted exotic animals. The park opened its doors on October 14, 1999 in Wynnewood Oklahoma.
Today Joe Exotic is the entertainment director of the largest private zoo for tigers in the world, housing nearly 220 big cats in Wynnewood Oklahoma. He also operates a YouTube Channel called JoeExoticTV. Joe Exotic announced he was running for Governor of Oklahoma in the summer of 2017. Joe’s announcement is here:
For more from Joe Exotic, here is an entertaining interview and recap of his colorful background:
