Let me take you back to 2011.

We were still basking in the afterglow of hosting the FIFA World Cup the year before, Trump was just an annoying reality TV star, and the economy was doing okay, having righted itself after the 2008 recession.

In December of that year, South African Nobanda Nolubabalo made some terrible life choices.

The then 23-year-old was busted in Bangkok smuggling 650g of cocaine mixed with baking powder, which had been strategically hidden in her dreadlocks.

You can view a full gallery of the cocaine-enhanced dreadlocks, which were presented as evidence during her trial.

You can also check out some of the other creative ways that people have tried to smuggle drugs, here and here.

Back to Nolubabalo.

TimesLIVE reports that due to her cooperation with authorities in their investigation, Nolubabalo’s sentence of 30 years in jail has been halved.

In an early morning phone call to DispatchLIVE on Wednesday, Henk Vanstaen, the Good Samaritan who has been assisting South Africans incarcerated in Thailand, confirmed that Nobanda will be released on August 27.

“From there she will be taken to the prison where she was initially apprehended to be fingerprinted. After this she will be transferred to Bangkok’s International Detention Centre.”

Vanstaen said it was expected that she would fly back to South Africa about five days later.

I’m sure her mom, pictured with her, above, will be happy to have her home.

[source:timeslive]