Jeremy Meeks has spoken out about how fan behavior made his life frustrating and difficult while he was in prison.
Jeremy Meeks, while you may not know him by name you’ll likely recognize him as his photo was shared endlessly in the mid 2010s.
Meeks became known as the ‘world’s hottest felon’ after his mugshot went viral in 2014. He quickly gained global attention as the as his face was shared on social media repeatedly.
At the time, he was charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm and taken into custody by the Stockton Police Department.
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Over a decade later Meeks has now turned his life around but is often asked about becoming a viral sensation over night.
In a new interview while appearing on the Inside True Crime podcast, he vented his frustration at fans who prevented him seeing his family while in prison due to them taking his visitor passes.
He said: “I’m still a month into my mug shot going viral. This is so fresh that I'm still getting letters. I got random, random f--king people coming up to visit me.”
He remarked that he would tell the guards that he didn’t know these people coming to see him, prior to meeting them but due to the strict rules, it counted as a visit regardless.
He was only allowed two per week, and fans attempting to visit him meant he was unable to see his family, including his young son.
Meeks explained: “They're like, ‘Well, I'm still taking your visit. You can deny it, but I'm still gonna take your visit for the week.
“So now my family can't come because I got f**king random people coming to see me and it was so frustrating."
Meeks also said he confronted two people who came back several times.
He explained: “[I told them] ‘Hey, please don't come back. I need to see my kids.
“’My son's 5 years old and he doesn't understand why I'm not home and he needs to see me. I’m just gonna ask that you please don't come back.’”
“It was rough. And the only thing that made it rough is ‘cause my kids.”
Since his release from prison in 2016 after serving 13 months for felony gun possession, he has been open about his celebrity experience and even wrote a memoir in 2024, Model Citizen.
Gerrard Kaonga