10 Most Famous People in Prison Right Now

10 Most Famous People in Prison Right Now

Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re looking at 10 Most Famous People in Prison Right Now.

For this list, we’ll be examining the most widely known individuals or celebrities who are currently incarcerated.

Which of these famous people did you not know was stuck behind bars? Share with us in the comments below!

Suge Knight

As the co-founder of Death Row Records, Suge Knight played a significant role in shaping the West Coast hip-hop scene. But just as his influence grew, so did his run-ins with the law. In 2015, while on the set of the N.W.A. biopic “Straight Outta Compton,” Knight got into an altercation with two men, Terry Carter and Cle “Bone” Sloan. He is alleged to have run over both of them with a pickup truck, killing Carter and leaving Sloan with severe injuries. Authorities initially charged Knight with murder and attempted murder, but he later pleaded no contest to voluntary manslaughter. In 2018, he was handed a 28-year prison term, and will be eligible for parole in 2034.

Joe Exotic

Controversial zookeeper and businessman Joe Exotic gained international recognition when he was featured in the wildly popular Netflix series “Tiger King”. Among other things, the show depicted the intense rivalry between Exotic and animal rights activist Carole Baskin. The relationship between the two was so strained that Exotic reportedly paid hitmen to have Baskin murdered. Additionally, he was accused of killing five tigers and selling others across state lines, in violation of federal wildlife laws. In 2019, a federal jury returned guilty verdicts on 17 charges of animal cruelty and two counts of attempted murder-for-hire. Exotic was sentenced to 22 years in prison. After appealing his conviction, his sentence was reduced by just one year.

Danny Masterson

“That ‘70s Show” actor Danny Masterson had faced sexual assault allegations since March 2017, with the incidents dating as far back as the early 2000s. Masterson denied the claims, but was dropped by his agency and fired from the Netflix sitcom “The Ranch”. Just like Masterson, some of his alleged victims were also members of the Church of Scientology, and they reported being harassed by the institution after coming forward. Masterson’s first court case ended in a mistrial, but in May 2023, a second jury found him guilty of two of the three criminal counts he was facing. The charges carry a possible prison sentence of 30 years to life.

Julian Assange

For years, the United States government has tried to extradite Australian journalist and activist Julian Assange to face espionage charges. As the founder of WikiLeaks, Assange first gained notoriety in 2010 when he published several classified U.S. military and diplomatic documents. That same year, he was charged with sexual assault in Sweden and a warrant was issued for his arrest. In 2012, Assange jumped bail in London and sought asylum at the Ecuadorian embassy to avoid extradition to Sweden. He remained there until 2019 when he was arrested by British authorities after Ecuador revoked his asylum. Assange has been imprisoned in London since then, fighting against his extradition to the U.S., where he faces a possible 170-year sentence.

Oscar Pistorius

Nicknamed the “Blade Runner,” Oscar Pistorius made history by competing in both the Paralympic and Olympic Games, using carbon-fiber prostheses. Pistorius’ status as an internationally renowned athlete was extinguished on Valentine’s Day 2013 when he fatally shot his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, at his home in Pretoria, South Africa. According to the former athlete, he had mistaken her for an intruder and fired in self-defense. Nevertheless, he was found guilty of culpable homicide and handed a five-year prison sentence. Upon appeal by prosecutors, Pistorius’ conviction was changed to murder and his sentence was eventually increased to 13 years and five months. He was up for early release in March 2023, but was denied by a parole board.

Elizabeth Holmes

The healthcare technology company Theranos was founded in 2003 by Elizabeth Holmes with the promise of revolutionizing blood testing. Holmes raised nearly a billion dollars from investors on claims that her seemingly exceptional machine - the Edison - could run multiple tests using only a few drops of blood. It was later revealed, however, that Theranos’ technology did not work as claimed, and the company knowingly defrauded investors. In June 2018, Holmes was charged with multiple counts of wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Following a highly-publicized trial, Holmes was found guilty of four criminal counts and sentenced to over 11 years in prison. She began serving her term in May of 2023.

Josh Duggar

The TLC reality series “19 Kids and Counting” focused on the lives of Michelle and Jim Bob Duggar, and, as the title suggests, their 19 children. The show was a huge success until its abrupt cancellation in 2015 following some pretty shocking revelations. The eldest child Josh Duggar admitted to inappropriate behavior against underage girls, including some of his own sisters. However, as the statute of limitations had passed, Duggar didn’t face any criminal charges. In 2021, Duggar was arrested for receiving and possessing explicit material involving minors. He opted to fight the charges in court and was ultimately found guilty. With a nearly 13-year prison sentence handed down to him, Duggar's earliest possible release date is in 2032.

Jared Fogle

For 15 years, Jared Fogle was the face of restaurant chain Subway. Fogle claimed that a diet consisting mostly of Subway sandwiches had helped him lose nearly 250 pounds in one year. In 2015, however, his partnership with the franchise came to an end. That year, Fogle’s home was raided by the FBI, where they uncovered evidence that he had distributed and received obscene images and videos of minors. He also admitted to traveling across state lines to engage in unlawful conduct with an underage girl. Fogle faced a possible 50 years in prison, but after accepting a plea deal, he was sentenced to 15 years and 8 months. He is eligible for early release in 2029.

R. Kelly

Throughout most of his career, disgraced R&B star R. Kelly had been dogged by numerous allegations of sexual misconduct. The claims first came to light in 2002 when Kelly was arrested after a leaked video showed him engaging in inappropriate contact with a minor. He was, however, acquitted of those charges in 2008. It would take more than a decade for his day of reckoning to eventually come. In 2019, the Lifetime docuseries “Surviving R. Kelly,” which featured testimonies from some of his accusers, brought the case back to the spotlight. Kelly was arrested soon after and faced multiple federal and state criminal charges. Altogether, he is serving a 31-year sentence, with a release scheduled for December 2045.

Harvey Weinstein

Harvey Weinstein’s Hollywood empire crumbled in October 2017 when The New York Times and The New Yorker revealed numerous allegations of sexual harassment and assault against him. The revelations ignited the MeToo movement, which saw many individuals come forward with their own experiences of misconduct. In total, more than 100 women accused Weinstein of either harassing or assaulting them, with some dating as far back as 1980. As a result, multiple criminal charges were unveiled against the producer in New York and Los Angeles. In 2020, he was sentenced to 23 years in the New York case, followed by a 16-year sentence in the Los Angeles case the next year. He is expected to serve both terms separately.