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“Real Housewives of Salt Lake City” star Jen Shah entered a last-minute guilty plea in her federal fraud case because she wants to “pay her debt to society,” her lawyer said.
Shah, 48, pleaded guilty when she appeared in front of U.S. District Judge Sidney Stein in Manhattan federal court Monday. She previously pleaded not guilty to all charges.
The reality star admitted to conspiracy to commit wire fraud in connection with telemarketing. The other count against her, conspiracy to commit money laundering, was dropped as part of the plea deal.
Shah’s attorney Priya Chaudhry revealed the reason the Bravo star entered the guilty plea in her case, saying in a statement to Page Six: “Jen pled guilty because she wants to pay her debt to society and put this ordeal behind her and her family.”
“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,” the lawyer explained.
Chaudhry added that her client was “sorry for disappointing her husband, children, family, friends and supporters.”
Shah shares two sons, Sharrieff Jr., 28, and Omar, 19, with husband Sharrieff Shah Sr.
Shah faces a maximum of 30 years in prison and five years of supervised release. However, her plea agreement asked for 11 to 14 years behind bars and restitution of up to $9.5 million.
The TV personality previously faced 50 years in prison before her second charge was dropped. Her sentencing is scheduled for November.
Shah apologized for her actions and admitted wrongdoing to the judge Monday.
“Wire fraud, offering services with little to no value. We used interstate telephones and emails,” Shah was quoted as saying by Matthew Russell Lee of Inner City Press. “I knew many of the purchasers were over the age of 55. I am so sorry.”
The reality star acknowledged that her actions were “wrong and illegal.”
Shah was accused of scamming hundreds of people out of money through a nationwide marketing scheme. Her arrest in March was documented in the second season of “RHOSLC.”
The show’s cameras followed her leading up to her court appearance Monday, unnamed sources told Page Six, though the third season finished production earlier this year.
Initially, Shah didn’t take a plea deal in her fraud trial and maintained her innocence.
“I’m fighting this. I am innocent,” she told Andy Cohen during the Season 2 reunion. “And I will fight for every person out there that can’t fight for themselves because they don’t have the resources or the means, so they don’t fight.”
Photo: Andrew Peterson/Bravo
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