Dog the Bounty Hunter Reveals Secret Son

Duane “Dog the Bounty Hunter” Chapman has revealed that he has a secret son. Chapman revealed the news in an Instagram post, sharing a photo of the man, Jon, and his wife. Not a secret anymore, Jon certainly bears a strong resemblance to his father, as seen below.

“For the last four years, this day was a terrible reminder of one of the greatest losses of my life,” Chapman wrote in the post’s caption. “But God redeemed this day when I discovered my son Jon, who I just met recently, was born on this day. So now instead of sorrow, this day has a new meaning. This is my son Jon and his wife Jodi.” Chapman then explained that he will share “the whole story of Jon” in his forthcoming book: Nine Lives and Counting. “For anyone who has suffered a terrible loss please know God restores and redeems,” Chapman added. “Happy birthday son, love you both.”

Including Jon, Chapman is father to 13 children, two of which he shared with his late wife, Beth. Chapman and Beth grew into stardom with their hit A&E reality series, Dog the Bounty Hunter, which aired from 2004 until 2012. It then began airing in syndication the following year. The couple also starred in the CMT series Dog and Beth: On the Hunt (2013-2015), and returned briefly to A&E in 2017 for the special Dog and Beth: Fight of Their Lives, which followed Chapman’s battle with throat cancer. Sadly, in 2019, after announcing a new series — the scrapped UnleashedTV series Dog’s Most Wanted — Beth lost her battle with cancer. She was 51 years old.

Back in October, Chapman, 70, sat down for an interview with Chris Collins, and dished on his career as a bounty hunter. “I started bounty hunting in 1979. And there were two bounty hunters in America, Papa Thorn and Dog the Bounty Hunter. Since that day, I’ve arrested over 10,000 fugitives,” he shared. “I’ve shot about 1500 men and women with tasers and non lethal weapons… So there is no bounty hunter at all even close to me. There’s about 6500 bounty hunters in the United States. 

He continued, “The reason there were only two is because I started going after the top FBI agents when I got out of prison. I was in the top 10 from the FBI service, and I arrested one and they gave me 10 grand. And the FBI stepped in and said ‘Hey, wait a minute, what are you doing?’ And I’m like, ‘I’m a bounty hunter. I’m going after these guys, grant apiece.’”