Jen Shah granted early prison release after Real Housewives star served less than three years

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Jen Shah has been serving time since February 2023

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The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City star Jen Shah is set to be released from a federal Texas prison in a matter of days.

Shah, 52, has been serving time at the Federal Prison Camp in Bryan, Texas — the same prison where convicted sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell and Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes are being held — since February 2023 after pleading guilty in July 2022 to federal charges of committing wire fraud.

The Federal Bureau of Prisons has approved a December 10 release date, a further reduction of Shah’s six-and-a-half-year sentence, due to good behavior, participation in programming at the prison, and beginning to pay back the court ordered $6.5 million in restitution to victims, People reported.

“Everyone's very grateful for the BOP's decision, especially because it means Jen will be able to reunite with her family for the holidays,” Shah's manager, Chris Giovanni, told the publication. “It's a gift she doesn't take for granted.”

“Jen's in a really positive, hopeful place mentally,” he added. “She's done a lot of reflecting and real growth during her time away, and is genuinely not the same woman as she was before. Her focus is on her family and building a healthier, more grounded life. She understands the seriousness of the mistakes she made and is excited to put this chapter behind her so that she can show everyone the woman she's worked hard to become.”

The Independent has reached out to a representative for Shah for comment.

Shah’s arrest was widely publicized and caught on cameras while she was filming season two of the hit Bravo reality TV show. She and one of her assistants, Stuart Smith, were charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud in connection with telemarketing and conspiracy to commit money laundering.

The indictment alleged that Shah and Smith carried out a nationwide telemarketing scheme with others' help between 2012 and 2021. Prosecutors said Shah and others had sold “business services,” including website design services, to elderly victims who did not even own a computer.

Shah and others also sold the names of individuals that they knew would be defrauded by other participants in the scheme. Shah used profits from the scheme to fund the luxurious lifestyle that viewers saw her portray on the show.

She pleaded guilty in July 2022 after maintaining her innocence, even stating in a promo for the show, “the only thing I’m guilty of is being Shah-mazing.”

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“I am sorry. My actions have hurt innocent people,” said Shah at her sentencing. “I want to apologize by saying, I am doing all I can to earn the funds to pay restitution.”

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