Jen Shah’s Prison Sentence Reduced: Why The Reality Star Is Getting An Earlier Release

The 'Real Housewives of Salt Lake City' star will be released a year early from her prison sentence for her fraud scheme.

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March 27, 2023 3:00PM EDT
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THE REAL HOUSEWIVES OF SALT LAKE CITY -- Season:3 -- Pictured: Jen Shah -- (Photo by: Chris Haston/Bravo)
Jen Shah, a cast member from the reality TV series "The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City" looks on while being driven from the federal courthouse, in Salt Lake City. Two members of "The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City" reality television show appeared in court for the first time Tuesday after being arrested on federal fraud charges alleging they cheated hundreds of people nationwide over a 10-year period in a telemarketing scheme. Shah, 47, of Park City, Utah, and Stuart Smith, 43, of Lehi, Utah, were arrested in Utah on charges including conspiracy that were unsealed in New York City, authorities announced Reality Show Arrests, Salt Lake City, United States - 30 Mar 2021
Jen Shah Exits Federal Courthouse After Receiving 6.5 Year Prison Sentence Pearl Street, NY. 06 Jan 2023 Pictured: Jen Shah. Photo credit: Mayer / MEGA TheMegaAgency.com +1 888 505 6342 (Mega Agency TagID: MEGA930599_001.jpg) [Photo via Mega Agency]
Image Credit: Chris Haston/Bravo

Jen Shah’s prison sentence has been slightly reduced after beginning her sentence in February. After beginning a six-and-a-half-year sentence in February, the Federal Bureau of Prison’s inmate database indicates that the Real Housewives of Salt Lake City star’s sentence has been reduced by a year, and her release date from the Federal Prison Camp in Bryan, Texas will now be August 20, 2028.

While it’s not clear why Jen, 49, received a reduction in her sentence (which was originally 78 months), her representative revealed that she was working on paying back the victims of her telemarketing scheme in a statement to People. “I have spoken with my client Jen Shah over the phone this week — she is doing well and remains committed towards making her victims whole,” they said. “She has initiated her payments towards restitution, and we hope to have her home as soon as possible so that she may resume life with her family and work, putting this chapter of her life behind her.”

Jen’s original sentence was for 6.5 years. (Chris Haston/Bravo)

The reality star received her sentence in January after she pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud in July 2022. She had originally pled not guilty when she was arrested in March 2021. In addition to her sentence, Jen was also ordered to five years of supervised release, to forfeit $6.5 million as well as luxury and counterfeit luxury items, and to pay over $6.6 million in restitution to the victims of the scheme.

After her sentence, Jen’s lawyer Priya Chaudry released a statement saying that the reality star was very apologetic about the fraud. “Jen Shah 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,” the lawyer said in a statement at the time. 

When Jen began her sentence she also released a lengthy statement on her Instagram vowing to right her wrongs. “People got hurt because of my decisions. While incarcerated, I will work to make amends and reconcile with the victims of my crime,” she wrote in part.