FORT BEND COUNTY, Texas — The man at the center of the tiger investigation in west Houston is out of jail after posting bond.
Victor Cuevas, 26, will have to wear an ankle monitor and follow a curfew.
Victor Cuevas had been behind bars since May 14 when his bond was revoked on an unrelated 2017 murder case. It was revoked because he was charged with evading arrest after he allegedly ran away from police with the tiger in the back of an SUV.
The judge set a new bond of $300,000. It's not clear who paid it.
Cuevas, who we learned from his wife's is an MMA fighter, was given a December trial date for the 2017 case.
India was found last weekend, several days after he was spotted strolling around a west Houston neighborhood on May 9.
The 9-month-old tiger cub was taken to the Cleveland Amory Black Beauty Ranch, which is near Dallas.
Cueva’s attorney, Michael Elliott said Cuevas loved the tiger and treated her well, but the tiger does not belong to Cuevas.
During the May 14 bond hearing, the off-duty Waller County deputy who came face-to-face with the tiger testified about the conversation he had with Cuevas on May 9.
Waller County deputy Wes Manion, who confronted Cuevas Sunday night after hearing about the tiger on social media, testified Cuevas said the tiger was his, and that he saw both inside a white SUV. He testified Cuevas drove across a neighbor’s yard and “peeled out” as police arrived.
Cuevas’ lawyer said Manion had no authority to order his client to stay.
“I ordered Victor Cuevas to go back to the driveway several times,” Manion said. “I identified myself as a sheriff’s office employee.”
The state also had Manion narrate two new pieces of video.
One is cell phone footage showing the white SUV Manion says Cuevas and the tiger were in driving off.
The other is black and white neighborhood security video appearing to show the same SUV speeding down the street…with police in pursuit a few seconds later.
Before Manion, the judge heard from Cuevas’ pre-trial supervision officer, who testified Cuevas broke curfew.
Georgie Cuevas, who was identified as the wife of Victor Cuevas, also testified as to what happened on May 9.
She says she is a student at UCLA.
“What did you tell Victor to do?” Elliott asked her.
“To go into his car," she answered.
“To do what with the animal?” Elliott asked.
“To put him into safety," she answered.
The deputy who confronted the tiger also took the stand.
“He then stated, 'It was my tiger,' I told him to 'get his tiger.' Yes, sir, he said, 'that is my tiger,'" said Sgt. Wes Manion with the Waller County Sheriff's Office. “He approached the tiger, grabbed him by the collar and kissed it on the forehead and proceeded to take it back into his house."
We also learned more about what Cuevas does for work.
“He’s a fighter, a barber and does Airbnb as well," Cuevas' wife said.