Channel Nine has revealed how they missed Married at First Sight star Timothy Smith’s drug dealing past while doing background checks on the boyfriend ahead of the reality show.
The season 11 contestant’s criminal record was revealed by A Current Affair on Tuesday night, and viewers were shocked to learn that the real estate mogul, 52, spent more than a year behind bars in the United States.
Timothy said he did not tell MAFS producers that he was a convicted drug dealer when he applied for the show, and Channel Nine said they were unable to find any records of his shocking past.
Nine told Daily Mail Australia that all participants undergo “extensive background checks”, including police checks in the countries in which they have resided.
“In Timothy’s case, the controls were carried out in Australia and Canada and were clear,” the network revealed.
Channel Nine has revealed how they missed Married at First Sight star Timothy Smith’s drug dealing past while doing background checks on the boyfriend for the reality show.
The boyfriend only shared this week that he was arrested in the United States.
Timothy, who lived in Vancouver at the time, said he used a helicopter to illegally smuggle large quantities of marijuana from Canada to the United States.
“I was a helicopter pilot in North America and I did something really stupid,” he said, revealing that he was paid to take flying lessons for the purpose of trafficking.
‘It’s something I’m not proud of. “I’m definitely not proud of it, but it doesn’t define who I am and I’m not the same person I was 17 years ago.”
The season 11 contestant’s criminal record was revealed by A Current Affair on Tuesday night, and viewers were shocked to learn that the real estate mogul, 52, spent more than a year behind bars in the US. .
Timothy said he would earn $100,000 per trip across the border flying in a helicopter loaded with marijuana.
“I would take off from a small unmanned airport and fly down a valley to a stream where I would meet an all-terrain vehicle… within a minute, the helicopter would be loaded,” he said.
Timothy was captured by police in Los Angeles while returning to the country after visiting his sick mother in Australia.
The boyfriend was sentenced for “marijuana trafficking across an international border” in 2006, but spent another “four or six months in immigration detention.”
Timothy said he didn’t tell MAFS producers he was a convicted drug dealer when he applied for the show, and Channel Nine said they couldn’t find any record of his shell-shocked past.
Despite spending his days locked up with hardened criminals, his true punishment came when both his mother and younger brother, Dave, died while he was in prison.
An emotional Timothy said Dave called him at the beginning of his sentence and told him, “Don’t let anyone mess with you” and “I’ll be there when you get out,” but he wasn’t there.
Tragedy struck midway through Timothy’s sentence when his mother died of cancer and his brother took his own life just months later.
Timothy was paired with fan favorite Lucinda Light during his stint on MAFS this year, but they split after a disastrous visit to a family home in Melbourne.
Nine told Daily Mail Australia that all participants undergo “extensive background checks”, including police checks in the countries in which they have resided.
The couple ended their marriage at the following commitment ceremony, and Timothy acknowledged his lackluster effort to the experts.
“I didn’t walk into a family home with the best attitude,” she said at the time, before admitting that she found the deep emotional exploration “uncomfortable” and “overwhelming.”
Even though their romance didn’t work out, Timothy and Lucinda have maintained a close friendship since the cameras stopped rolling.
The former on-screen couple have been spotted on nights out together, while Lucinda recently gushed about how “glad” she is to have Timothy as a “dear friend.”