The reactions are starting to roll in. After asserting her innocence for months, Jen Shah did an about face and plead guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud. This comes just days before her trial, which was scheduled for July 18th. Jen held a surprise court appearance to plead guilty to the count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. The charges were in connection to an alleged telemarketing scheme that spanned years. The U.S. attorney prosecuting the case dropped the separate money laundering charge against the Real Housewives of Salt Lake City star.
As reported by People, Andy Cohen shared his feelings on the latest episode of his SiriusXM show Radio Andy. He told guest Jonah Hill, “I don’t know how to feel about this, Jen Shah pleading guilty.” Jonah replied, “Right, well, when you say you’re guilty of something, it maybe means you’re guilty.” Andy countered, “All it means is she’s changing her plea.”
The Bravo executive admitted that he has become close to Jen, further complicating his feelings. He even revealed that Jen surprised his newborn daughter with a gift. Said Andy, “And I was like, ‘Jen Shah, with everything you have going on, that you thought to send to send Lucy a gift. I just thought that was so nice of her.”
A listener then called into the show to compare Jen to Real Housewives of New Jersey star Teresa Giudice. Teresa famously plead guilty to fraud back in 2014. Andy didn’t have the same take. He explained, “I also think what I’ve found regarding viewer response to some of these moments that have happened, some of the viewers are more outraged when there are — you know, when you look at Tom Girardi and what it looks like he did — actual victims that you can look at.” He added, “When you look at Joe Giudice defrauding the government of some tax money, I think you wind up getting more upset when you know that there are victims.”
In March of 2021, during production on season 2 of RHOSLC, Jen and her assistant, Stuart Smith, were arrested. While they both originally plead not guilty to the charges, Stuart was the first one to change his plea to guilty. He did so back in November of last year, causing speculation that he would “flip” on Jen. Stuart is currently free on bail and is awaiting his sentencing. He faces a maximum of 70 years in prison for his role in the telemarking scheme.
A Twitter thread from Inner City Press’s Matthew Russell Lee broke down what happened in court. Jen told Judge Sidney H. Stein that she had committed “wire fraud, offering services with little to no value.” She continued, “We used interstate telephones and emails. I knew many of the purchasers were over the age of 55. I am so sorry.”
Jen also admitted that she had offered “misrepresentations, regarding the value of the product or service, of which it had little to none.” Jen went on to say that what she did was “wrong and illegal.”
So what does this mean for Jen? Her not guilty plea means she won’t have to stand trial. But she faces a maximum of up to 30 years in prison. In addition, she agreed to not appeal if she is sentenced to “168 months’ prison or few.” Which equates to 14 years.
Priya Chaudhry, one of Jen’s attorneys, told People, “Ms. Shah is a good woman who crossed a line. She accepts full responsibility for her actions and deeply apologizes to all who have been harmed. Ms. Shah is also sorry for disappointing her husband, children, family, friends, and supporters. Jen pled guilty because she wants to pay her debt to society and put this ordeal behind her and her family.”
But despite her legal issues, Jen will still appear on the upcoming season of RHOSLC said a source. The insider dished, “She’s had Meredith [Marks] and Heather [Gay] by her side, who have been very supportive of their friend during a difficult time. Obviously her legal troubles have not been easy for Jen, let alone making this decision to plead guilty.” The insider noted that her case is “a very big part of Jen’s story.” They added, “Producers don’t want us to stop following it now. They’ll keep filming with her as long as they can, just like they did with Teresa.”
Jen is out on bail and will face sentencing on November 28th of this year. In her plea, Jen asked for only 11 to 14 years in prison. In addition, she will pay restitution of up to $9.5 million.
[Photo Credit: Bravo]
