KEY POINTS:
The father of TV's "Lion Man" has sent a heartfelt plea to his ex-wife - urging her to reinstate their son to his beloved Zion Wildlife Gardens.
In a letter to Patricia Busch, forwarded to the Herald, Kevin Busch detailed how his ex-wife bailed out their famous son Craig "Lion Man" Busch two years ago when the wildlife keeper needed help with a $400,000 debt.
But he claimed his former wife had unfairly taken control of the high-profile Northland business in a "coup d'etat" and pushed their son out.
"What a low blow," he wrote.
They had been married for 14 years but split about 30 years ago.
"[You] should be bursting with pride that one of your children has created a magnificent enterprise for his career and as a contribution not only to New Zealand but to the WORLD and the animal kingdom," wrote Kevin Busch, who signed off the letter as The Lion Man's Dad.
"Everyone loves Craig and he is one of New Zealand's great heroes, certainly the hero of all the Busch and Cooksley's [sic] family for all the generations they've been in this country. What a shame you have brought on the family."
Craig Busch and Patricia Busch are locked in an ongoing civil dispute over the management of the park.
It emerged this week that a Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry investigation found 40 of the park's big cats in unsanitary and crowded conditions.
MAF animal imports and exports team manager Rochelle Linwood told One News that Patricia Busch informed them her son Craig Busch was no longer employed by the park and had been replaced as operator by former Auckland Zoo boss Glen Holland.
Craig Busch hit the headlines in May last year when he was convicted on two charges of assaulting his former partner Karen Greybrook in 2005.
Kevin Busch's new wife Helena Busch said yesterday the pair stood by the letter but had not received a response.
She said they went public with the dispute without Craig Busch's knowledge because they wanted people to know what was going on.
Helena Busch said Craig Busch was depressed and had surgery following two separate accidents recently but was being cared for by a new partner - "his saving grace" - who was also living at the wildlife park.
She said her husband was proud of his famous son.
"Whenever Kevin tells anybody that he's the Lion Man's dad - which he is very, very proud of, he just loves to tell everybody - they all say 'oh yeah, you look just like him'," she said.
"Of course, he always says the opposite, 'no he looks like me'."
