Channel Nine has revealed how they missed Married at First Sight star Timothy Smith’s drug-running past while doing background checks on the groom before the reality show.
The season 11 participant’s criminal history was unveiled by A Current Affair on Tuesday night, with viewers shocked to learn the real estate tycoon, 52, spent more than a year behind bars in the US.
Timothy said he did not tell producers on MAFS he was a convicted drug smuggler when applying for the show, and Channel Nine said they failed to find any records of his shock past.
Nine told Daily Mail Australia all participants undergo ‘extensive background checks’, including police checks in countries they have resided in.
‘In Timothy’s case, checks were conducted 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-running past while doing background checks on the groom for the reality show
The groom only shared this week that he was arrested in the US.
Living in Vancouver at the time, Timothy said he used a helicopter to illegally smuggle large amounts of marijuana from Canada into the US.
I was a helicopter pilot in North America that did something really stupid,’ he said, revealing 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 participant’s criminal history was unveiled by A Current Affair on Tuesday night, with viewers shocked to learn the real estate tycoon, 52, spent more than a year behind bars in the US
Timothy said he would make $100,000 per trip across the border flying a helicopter loaded with marijuana.
‘I would take off from a little unmanned airport and I would fly up a valley into a creek where I would meet a four-wheel-drive… within a minute, the helicopter would be loaded,’ he said.
Timothy was caught by police in Los Angeles when he returned to the country after visiting his sick mother in Australia.
The groom was sentenced for ‘trafficking marijuana over an international border’ in 2006, but he spent another ‘four or six months in immigration’ detention.
Timothy said he did not tell producers on MAFS he was a convicted drug smuggler when applying for the show, and Channel Nine said they failed to find any records of his shock past
Despite spending his days locked up with hardened criminals, the real punishment came when both his mother and younger brother Dave died while he was in prison.
An emotional Timothy said Dave called him early in his sentence and said: ‘”Don’t let anyone mess with you” and “I’ll be there when you get out”, but he wasn’t.’
Tragedy struck mid-way through Timothy’s sentence when his mother died of cancer and his brother took his own life just a few months later.
Timothy was paired up with fan favourite Lucinda Light during his stint on MAFS this year, but they broke up following a disastrous homestay visit in Melbourne.
Nine told Daily Mail Australia all participants undergo ‘extensive background checks’, including police checks in countries they have resided in
The pair called time on their marriage at the following commitment ceremony, with Timothy acknowledging his lacklustre effort to the experts.
‘I didn’t go into homestay with the best attitude,’ he said at the time, before admitting he found deep emotional exploration ‘uncomfortable’ and ‘overwhelming’.
Despite their romance not working out, Timothy and Lucinda have maintained a close friendship ever since the cameras stopped rolling.
The former on-screen couple have been seen on nights out together, while Lucinda recently gushed over how ‘glad’ she is to have Timothy as a ‘dear friend’.
