Carole Baskin's missing husband's will was reportedly '100 per cent a forgery'

Carole Baskin's missing husband Don Lewis' will was "forged" according to a county sheriff in Florida.

County Sheriff Chad Chronister claimed experts have called Lewis' will "100 per cent a forgery," according to WTSP on June 2 (US Time).

"We knew that before," Chronister said. "Because the girl who came forward and said 'Hey, I was forced to witness and say that I witnessed this signature.' The problem was the statute of limitations had already expired. The will had already been executed at that point."

The sheriff indicated that legal action hadn't been taken due to the statue of limitations' expiration.

"There's no recourse," the sheriff added. "A judge deemed it valid, so the civil side of it would be execution of the will, the disbursements of the funds is one thing. But then you have the criminal side of it, it's unable to be prosecuted because of the statute of limitations."

Lewis went missing from Tampa in 1997, and was officially declared as dead in 2002. The billionaire was married to Baskin at the time. Since the Tiger King documentary aired on Netflix, there has been increased speculation into the circumstances surrounding Lewis' death.

READ MORE: Tiger King: Carole Baskin awarded Joe Exotic's US zoo in feud lawsuit

The last communication that the sheriff had with Baskin was when she rejected a polygraph test in 2011.

"Investigators have some great leads," he added.

"They're working through them. I hope something pans out."

Baskin has vehemently denied that she was in any way involved in Lewis' disappearance and death.

"Don was not easy to live with and like most couples, we had our moments," Baskin said in a statement on the BCR website shortly after Tiger King's release.

"But I never threatened him and I certainly had nothing to do with his disappearance. When he disappeared, I did everything I could to assist the police. I encouraged them to check out the rumours from Costa Rica, and separately I hired a private investigator."

The sheriff's remarks come after Baskin was awarded Joe Exotic's zoo on Monday. The order gives Baskin ownership of six hectares of land in Garvin County, Oklahoma, that houses a variety of big cats.

Exotic, whose real name is Joseph Allen Maldonado-Passage, was convicted last year for paying a hitman $US3,000 (approx. $4,300) to kill Baskin. He was also found guilty on multiple charges of violating the Lacey Act for falsifying wildlife records and the Endangered Species Act. He was sentenced to 22 years in prison.