When the Real Housewives of Salt Lake City first premiered, Jen Shah was the unbeatable star of the show. She was everything fans wanted in a reality TV star. Jen was loud and filled with opinions. She was almost like a Teresa Giudice on steroids. But as the seasons progressed, so did Jen’s bad attitude. She was caught screaming at her glam squad, allegedly punching Heather Gay in the eye, and trying to splash water all over Bravo’s equipment. So when she was arrested on the side of the road by the Feds, no one was surprised.
Why was Jen Shah arrested?
During Season 2 of the Real Housewives of Salt Lake City, Jen was indicted for her role in a years-long telemarketing scheme. This was no frivolous charge, as Jen was looking at a possible 14-year-long sentence behind bars. In 2020, Jen spoke with Access Hollywood about her line of work. She told the outlet, “People will come to me and I’ll invest in their companies, so we have a got a lot of different investments, all different kinds of things. I’ve been able to do it because what I’ve been able to carve out, the niche I’ve been able to carve out in the direct response marketing world.”
In March 2021, Jen and her assistant, Stuart Smith, were both arrested. The Manhattan U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss released a press release saying, “Jennifer Shah, who portrays herself as a wealthy and successful businessperson on ‘reality’ television, and Stuart Smith, who is portrayed as Shah’s ‘first assistant,’ allegedly generated and sold ‘lead lists’ of innocent individuals for other members of their scheme to repeatedly scam.” The Manhattan U.S. Attorney added, “In actual reality and as alleged, the so-called business opportunities pushed on the victims by Shah, Smith, and their co-conspirators were just fraudulent schemes, motivated by greed, to steal victims’ money. Now, these defendants face time in prison for their alleged crimes.”
Jen Shah pleads guilty
During the same press release, HSI Special Agent-in-Charge Peter C. Fitzhugh claimed that Jen and Stuart “built their opulent lifestyle at the expense of vulnerable, often elderly, working-class people.” The special agent added, “Shah and Smith objectified their very real human victims as ‘leads’ to be bought and sold, offering their personal information for sale to other members of their fraud ring.” For months, Jen maintained her innocence even though every defendant in the case had pleaded guilty to their respective charges.
The mother of two even made her Season 2 tagline, “The only thing I’m guilty of is being Shah-mazing.” However, after months of lying to everyone, in July 2022, Jen changed her plea to guilty. She pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud as part of a plea deal. The move sent shockwaves through her cast members, who seemed blindsided by the change of heart. Jen filed a motion to dismiss her case in August 2021, but the judge denied it. At the same time, Jen lost her original lawyers but later hired Priya Chaudry to represent her.
Jen Shah’s prison sentence has changed
During her trial, Jen hoped to get only three years of prison time. But her ideas quickly changed when she discovered what her coconspirators were being given. Court documents shown via @bravobravoduckingbravo noted a list of Tier A defendants. That showed that Carl Morris was sentenced to 6.5 years and that Ryan Mult was given five years. Stuart’s sentencing has been moved multiple times, but he will finally find out his fate on October 17th. However, Jen was sentenced to 6.5 years in Bryan Federal Prison Camp. While in prison, Jen has started to tutor other inmates and host an exercise class.
But Jen has been on her best behavior and has already had her release date moved forward three times. Her original release date was 2029. Almost immediately, the Bureau of Prisons moved her date forward by one year to August 30, 2028. However, just recently, her records now show her going home on Dec. 19, 2027. According to Page Six, “Jen has been mentoring and tutoring the other inmates and participating in anger management courses.” Prisoners are allowed up to 54 days of “good conduct time” off each year of their sentence. Jen can also earn additional time off by completing “Evidence-Based Recidivism Reduction” programs. Jen is currently keeping her head down and focusing on reuniting with her family sooner rather than later.
TELL US – DO YOU THINK IT IS FAIR THAT JEN’S SENTENCE KEEPS GETTING REDUCED?
