Married At First Sight fans are supporting Timothy Smith after it was revealed the groom is a convicted drug smuggler who spent time in a US prison on Tuesday night.
The season 11 star’s sordid history was revealed by A Current Affair, where viewers were shocked to learn the 52-year-old property mogul had spent more than a year behind bars.
Timothy was caught seventeen years ago using a helicopter to smuggle large amounts of marijuana from Canada and the United States.
During his prison sentence, tragedy struck twice when both his mother and younger brother died.
Instead of turning their backs on the reality star, viewers have taken to social media in droves to express their empathy and declare that the groom has “done his time” and is “still a good guy” regardless of his past.
Married At First Sight fans are supporting groom Timothy Smith, 52, (pictured), after it emerged the groom was a convicted drug smuggler who spent time in a US prison on Tuesday night
‘He’s a legend. I have so much respect for Tim,” one user commented in a MAFS fan group.
‘Who cares? He did his time. It was 17 years ago,” another fan agreed, while someone else replied, “Absolutely. I thought it was quite brave of him to talk about it. It really helped me understand how hard it is to open up [on the show].’
Others claimed that the death of Timothy’s relatives while he was in prison was sufficient punishment.
Rather than turning his back on the reality star, viewers have taken to social media in droves to express their empathy and declare that the groom has “done his time” and is “still a good guy” regardless of his past
‘That in itself is a life sentence. I still think he’s a good guy,” one person wrote.
‘What a great guy. When you see this, it makes sense why he is the way he is. It would have been so hard to lose your mother and brother while in prison. I couldn’t imagine that feeling,” another added.
During his appearance on A Current Affair, an emotional Timothy expressed his regret after being caught using a helicopter to smuggle marijuana.
During his appearance on A Current Affair, an emotional Timothy expressed his regret after being caught using a helicopter to smuggle marijuana.
“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 human trafficking.
‘It’s something I’m not proud of. I’m not proud of it at all, but it doesn’t define who I am and I’m not the same person I was seventeen years ago.”
Timothy said he would make $100,000 per trip across the border in a helicopter full of marijuana.
The groom was convicted in 2006 of ‘trafficking marijuana across an international border’, but they ‘held out for four or six months of immigration’
“I would take off from a small unmanned airfield and I would fly down a valley into a creek where I would encounter an all-terrain vehicle… within a minute the helicopter would be loaded,” he said.
Timothy was arrested by police in Los Angeles when he returned to the country after visiting his sick mother in Australia.
The groom was convicted in 2006 of “trafficking marijuana across an international border,” but they “stuck immigration for four or six months.”
Despite spending his days locked up alongside hardened criminals, the real punishment came when his mother and younger brother Dave died while he was in prison.
An emotional Timothy said Dave called him at the start of his sentence and said, ‘Don’t let anyone mess with you’ and ‘I’ll be there when you get out,’ but he wasn’t.”
Halfway through Timothy’s sentence, tragedy struck when his mother died of cancer and his brother died by suicide just a few months after her death.
Timothy said he didn’t tell the producers on MAFS that he was a convicted drug smuggler when he signed on for the show.
The groom was linked to fan favorite Lucinda Light during his stint on MAFS this year, but they split after a disastrous visit to a host family in Melbourne.
The couple ended their marriage at the next commitment ceremony, with Timothy acknowledging his lackluster efforts to the experts.
“I didn’t go to a host family with the best attitude,” he said at the time, before admitting that he found deep emotional exploration “uncomfortable” and “overwhelming.”
Despite their romance not working out, Timothy and Lucinda have maintained a close friendship since the cameras stopped rolling.
The former on-screen couple have been spotted together on a night out, with Lucinda recently sharing how ‘delighted’ she is to have Timothy as a ‘dear friend’.
Timothy, who was paired with Lucinda Light (right), said he didn’t tell producers on MAFS that he was a convicted drug smuggler when he signed on for the show