Rapper Tyga reportedly kept Bengal tiger as pet in Calabasas home
A Grammy-nominated rapper who uses the stage name Tyga allegedly illegally housed a pet tiger in his Southern California home.
Authorities received an anonymous tip April 19 about a Bengal tiger living at Tyga’s Calabasas home, NBCLA reported, citing California Department of Fish and Wildlife.
The home was not occupied when a warden arrived, and a search of the property turned up no signs of an animal, said department spokesman Andrew Hughan, according to KTLA-TV.
Officials staked out the home for seven hours until Tyga, or Michael Ray Stevenson, returned home at 11 p.m., Hughan told NBC4LA.
When they questioned the rapper about the exotic animal, Tyga told them he took it to a Ventura County shelter earlier that day, Hughan said.
The 7-month-old tiger was removed from the shelter and transferred to a permitted facility. State authorities would not disclose the location.
Tyga’s Instagram account shows a photo of the animal sitting on top of a black Rolls Royce.
State law prohibits tigers from being owned as pets. Tyga could face fines and up to six months in jail for misdemeanor possession of a prohibited species, Hughan said.
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