Jen Shah of "Real Housewives" gets 6 1/2 year prison term
Jen Shah, one of the stars of Bravo's "The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City," was sentenced to prison Friday after pleading guilty to a fraud charge earlier this year.
In a Manhattan courtroom, U.S. District Judge Sidney H. Stein announced that the reality star, 49, will serve a sentence of 6½ years in prison, the Associated Press reported. Before her sentencing, Shah was facing 11 to 14 years in prison.
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| Jen Shah in court with her attorneys during sentencing artwork by Elizabeth Williams |
“Reality TV has nothing to do with reality,” Shah said during Friday's hearing. "I am deeply sorry for what I’ve done. My actions have hurt innocent people.”
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| Jen Shah making tearful statement during sentencing court sketch by Elizabeth Williams |
According to multiple reports, Shah will have to surrender on Feb. 17.
In a statement provided to The Times Friday, Shah's defense lawyer, Priya Chaudhry, said the reality star "deeply regrets the mistakes that she has made and is profoundly sorry to the people she has hurt.
"Jen has faith in our justice system, understands that anyone who breaks the law will be punished, and accepts this sentence as just," Chaudhry added. "Jen will pay her debt to society and when she is a free woman again, she vows to pay her debt to the victims harmed by her mistakes.
In July, Shah pleaded guilty to the count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. She told a judge that in 2012 she took part in a massive telemarketing fraud for nearly a decade that prosecutors say cheated thousands of people nationwide.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Kiersten Ann Fletcher said during the July hearing that Shah engaged in a fraudulent scheme from 2012 to 2021 that sold bogus services advertised to help people make substantial amounts of money through online businesses.
Shah, who admitted she was aware of the fraud, said, “I knew this was wrong and that many people were harmed, and I’m so sorry."
On Friday, Shah also pledged to pay $6.5 million in restitution and forfeiture when she gets out of prison.
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