‘Real Housewives’ Star Jennifer Shah Pleads Guilty to Fraud in Telemarketing Case
The ‘RHOSLC’ star entered a plea deal, after previously saying she was not guilty in her fraud trial, after getting arrested in March 2021.
Jennifer Shah pleaded guilty in her telemarketing fraud trial on Monday, July 11. The 48-year-old reality star’s attorney withdrew the actress’s prior “Not Guilty” plea in Manhattan federal court. “At this time Ms. Shah would like to withdraw her plea of not guilty,” her lawyer Priya Chaudhry said, according to ABC News.
The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City star reportedly entered a plea deal, which will require her to pay back $9 million to the victims who were defrauded in her alleged telemarketing scheme. She’ll have to pay an additional $6 million, and she may be sentenced to serve up to 14 years in jail. She’s said that she wouldn’t appeal if her prison time is 168 months or less, per ABC News. By pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, prosecutors dropped her charge of conspiracy to commit money laundering, according to Page Six.
“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,” Jennifer’s lawyer said in a statement to PEOPLE. “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.”
Jennifer also reportedly admitted she knew he actions were “illegal” to the judge. “Wire fraud, offering services with little to no value,” she told Judge Stein. “We used interstate telephones and emails. I knew many of the purchasers were over the age of 55. I am so sorry.”
![This is the booking photo of the voice of Disney’s Pocahontas, Irene Bedard, after she was arrested for disorderly conduct. The 55-year-old - best known for voicing the famous character in the 1995 animated movie - had to be separated from another woman by police in Greene County, Ohio, on August 19 after the pair were arguing and screaming. According to a police report, the women “walked out into the street screaming, without any regard for traffic”. Bedard had “a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage on her breath”, but insisted she had not been drinking that day. She told police she had drunk a bottle of vodka the day before. Bedard said the other woman, Sheila Johnson, had been trying to help her into her “studio”, but she was unable to find her keys. According to the police report, Beard’s “emotions changed rapidly”, going from calm to becoming upset and eventually crying. Police tried to move Bedard away from a large window as they feared she might shatter the glass, but when Johnson offered them a name to call on Bedard’s behalf the actress ran away screaming. She was booked for disorderly conduct and released on August 21. Bedard was arrested twice over a three-day period back in November 2020. *BYLINE: Greene County Sheriff’s Office/Pop Nation/TMX/Mega. 19 Aug 2022 Pictured: The booking photo of the voice of Disney’s Pocahontas, Irene Bedard, after she was arrested for disorderly conduct. *BYLINE: Greene County Sheriff’s Office/Pop Nation/TMX/Mega. Photo credit: GreeneCountySheriff/PopNationTMX / MEGA TheMegaAgency.com +1 888 505 6342 (Mega Agency TagID: MEGA889083_001.jpg) [Photo via Mega Agency]](https://develop.hollywoodlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Celebrities-Arrested-In-2022-1.jpg?fit=192%2C240&resize=192%2C240)
![Tiger King star Doc Antle, real name Bhagavan Antle, has been arrested on alleged money laundering charges. The 62-year-old was booked in Horry County, in South Carolina on Friday (June 3) and is set to appear in court next week. Court documents show the arresting agency was the FBI. He is pictured here in his mugshot / booking photo. 04 Jun 2022 Pictured: Doc Antle / Bhagavan Antle mugshot booking photo. Photo credit: Horry County Sheriff/MEGA TheMegaAgency.com +1 888 505 6342 (Mega Agency TagID: MEGA864896_001.jpg) [Photo via Mega Agency]](https://develop.hollywoodlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Doc-Antle-arrested-2022.jpg?fit=192%2C240&resize=192%2C240)
The Bravo star originally pleaded not guilty, and if she lost, she could have faced up to 30 years in prison for the telemarketing scheme, which defrauded hundreds of victims. She was released on bail shortly after her arrest. Her former assistant Stuart Smith was also accused of participating in the scheme. He had also changed his plea in November. After Jennifer changed her plea to guilty, the judge asked if she understood that her scheme was illegal, and she said that she did. Her trial began on Monday after being postponed from March.
Jen was first arrested back in March 2021, while filming the second season of RHOSLC, and her arrest was caught on film. Her legal troubles were a major focus of the show’s second season. Her co-star Whitney Rose described the “pure shock” over the arrest in an exclusive interview with HollywoodLife in September. ““It was the most unexpected. It was terrifying because we didn’t know what was happening, but I just had never imagined that I would live through something like that. It seemed like it had come out of nowhere,” she said.