Steve McBee Sr. Self-Surrenders in South Dakota Prison to Begin 24-Month Sentence for Crop Insurance Fraud

Steve McBee Sr. has entered prison.

The McBee Dynasty: Real American Cowboys star, 52, self-surrendered to federal prison in Yankton, S.D., on Monday, Dec. 1, PEOPLE has learned. He was ordered by the judge in his crop insurance fraud case to do so by 2 p.m. local time. He turned himself in at approximately 1:30 p.m. local time.

McBee was sentenced to 24 months in prison in October after pleading guilty to one count of federal crop insurance fraud in 2024. He was also ordered to pay $4,022,124 in restitution.

McBee recently told PEOPLE that he hopes for an early release, either through the First Step Act or a pardon from President Donald Trump.

“I’ve been meeting with pardon attorneys,” he said. “We’re putting everything together to fill out the application and turn everything in.”

As he prepares the application for the pardon, McBee said he’s been getting advice from fellow reality star Todd Chrisley, who received a full pardon in May while serving his prison sentence for conspiracy to commit bank fraud, conspiracy to defraud the United States and tax fraud.

“We’ve had hours of conversation,” McBee said. “He doesn’t owe me anything, and he’s texted me every other day, like, ‘Checking on you, buddy. How are you feeling today? It’s going to be okay. Everything’s going to be all right. We’re going to get through this. I’m going to help you any way I can.’ ”

Ahead of entering prison, McBee spent Thanksgiving with his family on his ranch in Gallatin, Mo. He and his family — including his ex-wife Kristi and their four sons: Steven Jr., Jesse, Cole and Brayden — then drove in a bus together to Yankton on Sunday, Nov. 30, and McBee documented their travels on his Instagram.

“Everybody’s trying to have a great time and spend the moments together,” he said in one video. “That’s what life’s about.”

His ex, Galyna Saltkovska, also wished him well in a video posted to Instagram.

“I just wanted to let you know I’m sending you good vibes and good luck,” she said. “I know you got it, and we got it here. We’ll see you back here before you know it.”

To PEOPLE, he joked that the “hardest expectation” on him is that he has to get “all big and buff” while he’s in prison.

“I’m afraid if I come out, and I just look like me, they’re going to be like, ‘Really? You had months to work out,’ ” he said. “That’s a lot of pressure! I have to go in there and hit it hard. Yankton is an old college, and they said they have a really good gym in there and that the food is better than a lot of other places. I’m trying to find all the positives.”

One thing McBee said he feels “so guilty” about is how his prison sentence is affecting his son Cole’s wedding planning with fiancée Kacie Adkinson. The two got engaged on Nov. 7 and share a 10-month-old daughter, Blair.

“When I’m out, we’re going to have a big wedding,” he said. “The best case scenario is I would get a pardon or get home early, like in nine or 10 months. So, they tentatively want to get married next fall, but if dad’s not home, it’s going to have to flow to the spring. I feel so bad, but they’ll be okay and we’ll get through it.”

With the beginning of his sentence, McBee is hoping he can start putting the past behind him.

“Obviously, we hope for the best and pray for the best, but the storm is finally clearing,” he said. “A captain doesn’t become a skilled captain on calm water, they learn how to navigate through storms. This was certainly a level five hurricane, but when the storm breaks, you smell the fresh, clean air. We’re starting to come out of that, so I’m feeling a lot better.”

McBee Dynasty: Real American Cowboys seasons 1 and 2 are streaming on Peacock.