Craig Busch

Craig Busch
Born
Craig Kevin Busch

(1964-12-18)18 December 1964
Palmerston North, New Zealand
Known forThe Lion Man

Craig Kevin Busch (born 18 December 1964) is a former New Zealand television personality. He was the founder of Zion Wildlife Gardens, the subject of the Discovery show The Lion Man. Zion Wildlife Gardens is now named Kamo Wildlife Sanctuary.

He now lives in South Africa where he runs Libran Wildlife Reserve, a Wildlife Rehabilitation Sanctuary facility specialising in Big Cats.

Zion Wildlife Gardens

In 2005, Busch arranged the exchange of New Zealand's first natively born white tigers, from the Rhino and Lion Nature Reserve near Johannesburg.

In 2007, Busch was convicted in the Whangarei District Court of assaulting his former partner Karen Greybrook in 2005. Greybrook sustained a cut to her head, a fractured vertebra and bruising.

In November 2008, Busch was dismissed from Zion Wildlife Park. In the years that followed, Busch and his mother Patricia battled in court over ownership of the park and its assets. In August 2011, Busch attempted to have his mother adjudicated bankrupt over an alleged debt of $3800. In October, Busch withdrew the bankruptcy proceedings after a judge ordered Busch to pay $3800 as security costs for a hearing to proceed.

On 31 January 2012, Zion Wildlife Gardens was sold by receivers PricewaterhouseCoopers to Zion Wildlife Kingdom Limited. Busch also returned as a self-employed contractor, fulfilling a specialist animal handler role at the facility.

In April 2012, the park reopened under the name Kingdom of Zion.

In August 2013, Busch's former lawyer Wayne Peters again took action against his former client for unpaid legal fees. Presiding judge John McDonald ruled that Busch was required to pay the sum of $86,351.47 for the legal work carried out, as well as interest and costs.

From 2014 to 2015 Busch was the star of a reality TV series, The Lion Man: African Safari, on the Discovery Channel.

Jabula Big Cat Sanctuary

Until 2021 Craig Busch ran a new park near Rustenburg in South Africa - the "Jabula Big Cat Sanctuary", a Wildlife Rehabilitation Sanctuary facility specialising in Big Cats.

References

  1. ↑ Harris, Natasha (8 November 2005). "Triple joy as white tiger Rewa earns her stripes". Northern Advocate. Retrieved 16 September 2012.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
  2. ↑ "'Lion Man' convicted for assaulting partner". The New Zealand Herald. 23 May 2007. Retrieved 4 January 2013.
  3. ↑ Eames, David (24 May 2007). "Assault over three in bed only human says judge". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 1 December 2013.
  4. 1 2 "Lion Man out of a job, but the show will go on". TV3 News. 12 November 2008. Archived from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 22 September 2012.
  5. 1 2 "Zion lion park reopens". The New Zealand Herald. 8 April 2012. Retrieved 4 January 2013.
  6. 1 2 Neil Reid. "Zion Wildlife Park: Lion Man Warned of Cat Danger". Stuff (company). Retrieved 4 January 2013.
  7. ↑ Roberts, Rosemary (23 August 2011). "Lion Man tries to bankrupt his mum". Northern Advocate. Retrieved 19 November 2013.
  8. ↑ Ali, Imran (12 October 2011). "Lion Man won't bankrupt his mum". Northern Advocate. Retrieved 19 November 2013.
  9. ↑ NZN. "Zion Sold, Lionman to return to park". 3 News. Archived from the original on 2 December 2013. Retrieved 15 November 2012.
  10. ↑ Dinsdale, Mike (9 November 2013). "Lion Man must front up with $90k in legal fees". Northern Advocate. Retrieved 18 November 2013.
  11. ↑ Read, Neil (27 July 2014). "Lion Man becomes king of the screens". Stuff.
  12. ↑ McNaughton, Maggie (27 October 2007). "Lion man returns despite conviction". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 26 September 2011.
  13. ↑ "Claws out over Lion Man Craig Busch's new park in South Africa", 28 Jan 2015 NZ Herald
  14. ↑ "Leeuman ‘nie welkom in SA’", (Afrikaans), Yolanda Barnard, 25 Jan 2015, netwerk24.com