Fate of tigers homed at Inland Empire sanctuary unclear after eviction
By Joy Benedict, Dean Fioresi
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HEMET, California (KCAL, KCBS) — The fate of four bengal tigers who live at the Diamond Valley Lodge near Hemet is up in the air, after a legal dispute led to the owner’s eviction last week.
The property is now gated up, meaning no one is there except for the big cats.
“Very, very inhumane,” said Mario Felix. “You have to observe them, you can’t just leave them. All animals need observation.”
He’s one of many neighbors in the area who are upset by the sudden eviction of the tenants.
“That’s just really sad, it breaks my heart,” said Bobbee McGuire. “I just don’t understand how people could do something horrible like that. … They’re endangering these animals, and they’re endangering the health, safety and welfare of the public as well.”
Rob Curtis owns the tigers and has rented the property for the the last five. However, in recent months he’s been involved in a number of legal battles over the site, including over permitting and the sale, which he wanted to purchase outright.
It all came to a head last week when Riverside County Sheriff’s Department deputies evicted him and his staff from the property, forcing him to leave his tigers behind.
“They wanted us to pay $3 million for the property. We came up with the $3 million, we offered to pay it to them and they waited until the very last minute and said, ‘We’re not taking the offer and we want the tigers out tomorrow,” he said. “So, they caused this dilemma, they’re not victims by any stretch.”
An attorney for the company that owns the land, Diamond Valley Golf Club LLC., says that they were willing to sell but that Curtis did not present the funds in time. They say that he had months of notice that the eviction was going to happen.
“The tigers’ health and welfare is our number one concern here,” said a statement from the company. “On a daily basis we have allowed access for their feeding and care and will continue to do so.”
Curtis says that although he’s been able to get in every day since their eviction, the amount of time inside is limited and not consistent. In turn, he says he’s waiting outside of the gate to be allowed in, often in the heat.
“We can’t put the misters on for them, hose them off, do those things we normally do,” Curtis said.
The sanctuary is asking for an emergency hearing from a judge in order to get access to the property. They’re also working to remove the tigers by the end of the week to another sanctuary out of the state.
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