Joseph Maldonado-Passage is looking for clemency in the most unexpected places.
The Tiger King star, who is also known as Joe Exotic, has formed a friendship with 90 Day Fiancé alum Jesse Meester — and enlisted his help to ask President Joe Biden for a pardon.
In an Instagram post on Monday, Joe introduced the 29-year-old reality TV star to his followers and revealed his plans to team up with Meester.
"Meet my amazing dear friend Jesse Meester, actor, model, and so much more," Joe, 59, captioned a photo of a shirtless Jesse. "You will see him around on my stuff more and more as he is going to help me get a voice to the White House for President Biden to sign my pardon before November of this year."
"Show him some love," he added. "Love you, Jesse."
The 90 Day alum responded in the comments. "We love you too Joe! People close to you turned their back on you, but not us. You helped many people through lockdown and we should never forget the truth and authenticity you lived your life with. It's sad that the backstabbing and lying has become the norm [in] this society. Time to unite and fight back to get you out," Jesse wrote.
PEOPLE has reached out to Joe's lawyer for comment. Jesse is best known for his multiple 90 Day Fiancé appearances, dating back to 2018. The Amsterdam native was first in a long-distance relationship with Darcey Silva. Though the two are no longer together, Jesse has appeared on 90 Day Fiancé: Before the 90 Days, 90 Day Fiancé: The Single Life, Darcey & Stacey and other franchise spinoffs.
Joe has been behind bars since January 2020 for a murder-for-hire scheme against his longstanding rival Carole Baskin — which was outlined in Netflix's documentary series Tiger King — as well as animal abuse charges.
Joe was resentenced for the crime against Baskin in January, and one year was taken off of his original 22-year sentence. The documentary subject has been advocating for his release since the start of his prison sentence, maintaining his innocence. Recently, Joe was diagnosed with "aggressive" prostate cancer and added the health problem to the list of reasons why he shouldn't remain in prison.
"Please don't make me die in prison waiting for a chance to be free," he said to the federal judge during his January resentencing, per the Associated Press. SOURCE: Joe Exotic Reveals Friendship with 90 Day Fiancé Star to Secure Pardon (people.com)