The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City star Jane Shah was sentenced to 6.5 years, or 78 months, in prison on Friday, January 6, after pleading guilty to wire fraud. Details of when Jen will start serving her sentence and how long she will have to serve.
Jen arrived in court to face the verdict on Friday morning in Manhattan, New York, accompanied by her husband, Sharrieff Shah Sr.and two sons.
U.S. District Judge Sidney Stein, who has led in this case, where the courtroom is packed. “Jen Shah’s role on ‘The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City,’ which I think is why the courtroom is full right now, is just a role. People should not confuse the character she played on the entertainment show with the person before me,” she said. Inner City Pressvia Page Six.
NBC News shared the video below of Jen, 49, arriving in court this morning at approximately 8:20 a.m. Eastern Time.
Jen Shah arrived in court around 8:20 a.m. ET, more than 90 minutes before her scheduled sentencing. https://t.co/uQFdy9dZ31 pic.twitter.com/jIHmPwB4jC
– NBC News (@NBCNews) January 6, 2023
During the sentencing hearing, Judge Stein repeatedly referred to Jen as a “ringleader” in the role she played in a telemarketing scheme aimed at defrauding thousands, especially parents.
Assistant US Attorney Robert Sobelmanwho led the Federal Government’s case against Jen, said, “Every cooperator told me, Jen Shah was the boss. They all knew who he was.”
Before Jen’s sentencing, her lawyer, Man Chaudhry, said that Jen “regrets her mistake. He was sorry. He has faith in our justice system. Jen will pay her debt to society.”
However, Robert disagreed.
“There is no message from him that shows remorse, not one. The defense has not sent anything. That is not how he feels even though he has pleaded guilty,” he said.
Before Jen’s 6.5-year sentence was handed down, prosecutors asked for a longer sentence of 10 years for Jen. According to the sentencing post, “Jen’s victim” was duped over and over again until he was left with nothing. [Shah] and his co-conspirators remain in action until the victims’ bank account is empty, their credit cards are at their limit, and there is nothing else to take,” he wrote.
Jen’s defense attorney is hoping for a lesser sentence of three years, because of Jen’s moral character. They are hopeful that letters from family and friends will sway Judge Stein to a lighter sentence even if it is reduced from the original 14 years.
“We submit that the sentence is fair and just taking into account Ms. Shah’s history and characteristics, the facts and circumstances of the offense, and find that the court imposed a sentence that was ‘no more than necessary’ to achieve the purpose of the sentence,” her lawyer, Priya, previously argued.
Jen gave a final address to Judge Stein on Friday morning before hearing the sentence, saying, “Reality TV has nothing to do with reality. I want to apologize by saying that I’m doing everything I can to raise funds to pay restitution.
That’s disgusting ROSLC star later attributed his “long-unaddressed mental issues to me creating a broken reality.”
Neither Jen, her defense, nor her family would comment on her sentence at the time of posting.
Below is a video of Jen leaving court after her 78 month prison sentence as Coach Shah’s husband is seen walking in front of her.
Jen Shah leaves the court with her husband Coach Shah walking in front. The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City star was sentenced to 6.5 years today in a federal fraud case. #Housewife @TheRealJenShah pic.twitter.com/bVxiWaqXvE
— Cathy Russon (@cathyrusson) January 6, 2023
Despite receiving a 6.5 year prison sentence, most offenders only have to serve 85% of their federal prison sentence, so it is likely that Jen will be released after serving 5.5 years.
TMZ also reported that Jen is scheduled to serve her sentence on February 17, 2023. She will report to a prison somewhere in Texas.