NEED TO KNOW
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Jeremy Meeks, who first gained widespread fame when his mugshot went viral years ago, says strangers took his visitor slots in jail, preventing his family from seeing him
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Meeks, 42, said during an episode on Matthew Cox’s podcast “Inside True Crime” that he received hundreds of letters daily, including money orders and photos, while serving time on felony gun charges
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Meeks first gained fame back in 2014 when his mugshot went viral because of his piercing blue eyes and chiseled cheekbones
Jeremy Meeks, who first gained widespread attention when his mugshot went viral years ago, says fame disrupted his prison time, with strangers taking visitor passes and blocking family visits.
During an episode of Matthew Cox’s podcast, “Inside True Crime,” which was published on Sunday, March 22, Meeks, 42, described how the attention affected him while he was behind bars at the Sacramento County Jail. Though he was limited to two visits per week, he said those spots were often taken by people he didn’t know.
“I’m getting random people visiting me and I’m denying them before I even walk up the stairs into the section and I’m like, ‘I don’t know who that person is!’ I could see him through the glass. I’m like, ‘I don’t know who that person is!’”
He adds, “They’re like, ‘Well, I’m still taking your visit. You can deny it, but I’m still going to take your visit for the week.’ So now my family can’t come because I got f—ing random people coming to see me and it was so frustrating.”
Reflecting on the aftermath, Meeks said he was receiving “probably 300 letters a day,” adding, “It was just too much. I’m getting naked pictures, money orders — just all kinds of money being sent in.”
Meeks first gained fame back in 2014 when his mugshot went viral because of his piercing blue eyes and chiseled cheekbones, earning him the nicknames “Hot Felon” and “Prison Bae.” After serving 13 months on felony gun charges, he signed with a modeling agency and quickly broke into the fashion world. Meeks has also acted in several projects.
Jeremy Meeks in 2025.
Credit: Andreas Rentz/Getty
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Prior to going viral, Meeks spent over 10 years in juvenile detention and prison for various crimes. In 2024, Meeks released an autobiography about his journey. Reflecting on his life after prison, he told BuzzFeed in 2020, “It’s been a wild, wild ride, but I’m so grateful. I’m not taking anything for granted.”
Meeks is a father of two boys. He first became a dad with his ex-wife, Melissa Meeks, welcoming their son Jeremy Jr. He later had a second son, Jayden, with Topshop heiress Chloe Green in 2018.
Meeks told PEOPLE in April 2024 that he was single after ending his two-year-long relationship with Green in 2019. “I am single. I’m trying to focus on myself,” he said.
Later, in August 2025, he shared with Complex that he had been celibate for three years.
Read the original article on People
