The McBee Dynasty: Real American Cowboys’ Steven McBee Jr. is opening up in a huge way about his father’s time in federal prison.
As the son recently said of Steve McBee Sr. on the Dec. 10 episode of the family’s Meet the McBees podcast, “It’s so strange to think that my dad has been humbled down to the point where his identity is his inmate number.”
The eldest of the McBee brothers left no stone unturned in detailing how the two maintain contact as his father serves his two-year sentence after pleading guilty in 2024 to a multi-million-dollar crop insurance fraud.
“As far as communication with my dad goes, again, I never thought that I’d have this experience, but I have an app on my phone now called CorrLinks, where you get to communicate with inmates,” Steven Jr. said. “Generally, it’s just one email every single night. He tells me what he’s been doing, and I get to respond back to him, give him a little update on how things are going out here.”
Given Steve Sr.’s knack for “compartmentalizing” and staying busy, he apparently didn’t give much forethought to prison life, according to his son. As Steve Jr. put it, “We haven’t really had the time to process or even think too much about what it would be like to have my dad gone.”
Steven McBee Jr. describes dropping his dad off at prison
As widely reported, the family patriarch and founder of McBee Farm & Cattle Co. surrendered to the FPC (Federal Prison Camp) in Yankton, South Dakota, on Dec. 1. Steven and company were there to see him off, some 300 miles northwest of their Gallatin, Missouri, home.
“We all drove up to South Dakota together,” Steven explained. “And, I can tell you personally, that was one of the hardest days of my life. I’d put it up there with losing my grandpa as a senior in high school unexpectedly.”
Related: Steven McBee Jr. Reveal Family’s Holiday Plans and “Big Goals” for 2026 (EXCLUSIVE)
Steven Jr. cited his father as the leader of the McBee family, which includes his younger brothers, Jesse McBee, Cole McBee, and Brayden McBee, as well as their extended families. He noted how Steve Sr. had been “stripped down of everything” upon entry. “Cowboy hat, necklace, wallet, cell phone, and walking into a prison camp with nothing but the shirt on his back.” All in all, “a humbling experience.”
“I’ll just say, 2025 is full of one-off experiences that I will never, ever, ever go through again.”
Related: Steven Teases “Crazy” McBee Dynasty Season 3 Amid Dad’s Legal Woes (EXCLUSIVE)
Steven McBee Jr. reveals how his dad is adjusting to prison life
Of course, being stripped of one’s personal belongings would be quite the adjustment for anyone, but according to Steven Jr., there was an even bigger adjustment waiting for his father.
“The food aspect, I think, was the biggest shell shock,” according to the junior. “And also what being away from family is like.”
All part of the “highs and lows” Steven Jr. said fans can expect in an upcoming third season. During a recent interview with The Daily Dish over the BravoCon 2025 weekend in Las Vegas, Steven teased an “entirely new challenge” on top of his father’s criminal case. “We put it all out there,” he said.
Their focus would be creating a life for the next generation of McBees, including Cole and Kacie Adkison’s daughter, Blair Collins McBee, and Jesse and Alli McBee’s daughter, Summer Leigh McBee. “Really, it’s just gonna be us uniting and trying to make sure we can save the farm for the next generation,” Steven Jr. said.
Don’t miss Steve Sr.’s parting words just before he surrendered himself to federal authorities.
