Conway, Little Rock men sentenced for illegal tiger possession
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (KNWA/KFTA) — Two Arkansas men were sentenced to probation Thursday for illegally possessing a tiger cub under the Big Cat Public Safety Act.
According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Eastern District of Arkansas, Keidrick Damond Usifo, 30, of Conway, received five years of probation and a $5,000 fine. Deon Johnson, 29, of Little Rock, was sentenced to 18 months of probation and a $1,000 fine.
Both were indicted in March 2024 after federal investigators linked them to the tiger.
According to a news release, Usifo purchased the cub from a seller in Dallas, Texas, in March 2023 and brought it to his home in Conway. In April 2023, the Arkansas Game & Fish Commission (AGFC) received multiple complaints about a tiger being seen in a residential area.
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Authorities searched Usifo's home and, although they did not find the tiger, they uncovered evidence that a cub had been there, including social media posts showing Usifo with the animal.
Usifo was arrested on April 21, 2023, on an unrelated felony warrant. While in jail, he called Johnson, who had helped care for the tiger in his absence, according to the release. Johnson later denied any knowledge of the animal when questioned by authorities.
The Big Cat Public Safety Act, passed in December 2022, bans private ownership of big cats and prohibits public contact with them.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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