Johannesburg - A delighted Tanya Baird records herself walking through OR Tambo International in Johannesburg.
She is seen smiling and swaying from side to side in her Tik Tok video as she gets ready to board a United Airlines flight to the US.
The Joburg mother of two was on her way to visit her husband who is serving time in prison in the US on a drug charge.
Over the last few months, Baird has been posting videos on social media site Tik Tok to her thousands of followers about her excitement about visiting her husband in prison. She hasn’t seen him in years.
In her Tik Tok, posted approximately five weeks ago, an excited Baird says: “Today is the day. I checked in and I am now in the lounge and I board in a couple of hours. When you get to my age, there is normally not much to be excited about, but right now I literally feel like a kid before Christmas.
“I literally cannot wait. It’s been a very long time since I was truly excited about something and had butterflies as I do now. ”
But that would be the last time her followers would get an update from Baird.
Shortly after landing at the John Glenn International Airport in Columbus in the US, she was arrested by federal agents and taken into custody.
She’s has been charged with importing controlled substances, a federal crime that is punishable by up to 20 years in prison in the US.
Baird, who briefly appeared in court last week, is accused of mailing papers from South Africa to inmates in Ohio prisons. She allegedly saturated the papers with K2 — a synthetic form of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana — that she obtained from China, according to an affidavit filed in support of a criminal complaint.
Federal prosecutors allege that Baird helped orchestrate a scheme to smuggle dozens of packages containing sheets of paper soaked in drugs into prisons in Ohio and elsewhere.
The US Attorney's office in Columbus said in a news release that Baird also mailed suboxone to inmates, but didn't specify whether the prescription medication used in treating those addicted to opioids was found in saturated paper.
US media outlet, The Columbus Dispatch reported that the 46-year-old was accused of mailing to an Ohio inmate at least eight packages that each contained 30 pieces of saturated paper in June 2021 alone, according to the release.
It is not known whether Baird was working together with her husband, who is currently serving a prison sentence in a US prison.
Officials also say Baird sent legal documents saturated with K2 to someone in the United States, who in turn would send them to Ohio prisons.
Inmates paid Baird using CashApp or PayPal, the release said.
Federal prosecutors say 69 packages were sent into the US from June through August of 2021, with 34 bound for Ohio prisons.
The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) officers said they were delighted with the arrest of Baird.
“The arrest would not have happened without the co-operation and professionalism of our law enforcement partners, especially with the FBI,” DEA Acting Special Agent in Charge, Kent Kleinschmidt, said in a release.
“Synthetic drugs are extremely dangerous because their use can lead to very erratic behaviour and even death. They absolutely have no place in our society, but are especially problematic inside a correctional facility.”
Not much is known about Baird, other than that she worked as a commissions officer at a financial consultancy firm in the West Rand, in Johannesburg.
Baird is also a mother and has two daughters aged nine and fourteen, who remain in South Africa.
She was also planning on eventually moving to the US, to North Dakota, having begun with the emigration process.
A close friend of Baird’s, who did not want to be named, said she was extremely concerned about the 46-year-old.
“I wish there was more news on how Tanya was doing as we have heard nothing. I know her well and we are very concerned. She has two children and has just made some really bad decisions. I hope she’s okay,” said the friend.
“We are all very worried about Tanya, and in particular her children, who are still at home in Johannesburg.”
The Department of International Relations and Co-operation (Dirco) said it wouldn’t comment on the arrest.
“Out of respect for families and individuals we never comment on the arrest of South Africans, unless mandated so by the family,” said Lunga Ngqengelele, spokesperson for the Minister of International Relations and Co-operation
Meanwhile, In an interview with the UK’s Daily Mail in 2015, Baird opened up about her relationship with her then-boyfriend and now-husband only known as “JF”, who was jailed for 15 years for conspiracy to traffic marijuana.
She told the media outlet that her friendship with JF “very quickly” spiralled into something more.
“It wasn't my intention to find love or romance with any of my pen pals,” she said. “(But) we very quickly became a big part of each other's life. My routine started to run around 'Texas time'.
“I now can't imagine and don't want a life without him. We have formed a very deep bond – much deeper than friendship. We are just enjoying each other as we can over email and phone calls.”
Baird said that she made sure she sends his three children Christmas gifts and his mother flowers on Valentine's Day – “things that he would so dearly love to do but hasn't been able to“.
She added that she had been met with “many disapproving comments” about her relationship with the inmate, but “until you have gotten to know an inmate, you can't say much”.
Baird is expected to return to court at a later date.