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Jen Shah was seen walking outside her Utah home on Memorial Day weekend after a family member shared a $2.5M crowdfunding campaign to help pay for her legal fees ahead of trial for a nationwide telemarketing scam.
The 47-year-old reality star opted for a maroon sweatshirt and leggings while strolling around her compound wearing socks, as husband Sharrieff was seen heading into the family home.
Jen faces up to 30 years in prison if convicted in participating in the telemarketing scam which targeted the elderly and was unearthed while Bravo cameras were rolling for the second season of Real Housewives of Salt Lake City.
Out and about: Jen Shah was seen walking outside her Utah home on Memorial Day weekend after a family member shared a $2.5M crowdfunding campaign to help pay for her legal fees ahead of trial for a nationwide telemarketing scam
Cozy: The 47-year-old reality star opted for a maroon sweatshirt and leggings while strolling around her compound wearing socks
Shah was slammed by fans and called ‘disgusting’ after her cousin, Danny Filipe, organized a $2.5M crowdfunding campaign to cover Jen’s legal defense ahead of her October trial.
Jen and her assistant, Stuart Smith, are facing 30 years behind bars for their reported involvement in a nearly decade-long scandal which defrauded hundreds of people across multiple states.
The since-deleted Justice for Jen Shah GoFundMe campaign claimed that more than 10,000 people in the United States are ‘falsely accused and wrongfully convicted of crimes they did not convict.’
Casual day: Sharreiff, a football coach, wore a grey T-shirt with black shorts while walking around the property
Heading out: She later laced up a pair of grey Adidas sneakers and wore a New York Yankees hat as she left the house
Hands full: Jen juggled a few to-go boxes while walking down stairs
‘On March 30, lawyers from the Southern District of New York brought extremely serious allegations against my cousin. On April 2, Jen proclaimed her innocence by entering a plea of ‘not guilty,’ and hired an experienced team of New York lawyers that have begun aggressively defending her and fighting the government’s case.’
Fans were quick to question the ask, with one follower writing: ‘This is absolutely disgusting and I have reported it to GoFundMe. I hope others have to. Clearly people know better because you have received a single donation. You should all be ashamed of yourselves, but then again, she stole money from the elderly so… (yeah, yeah, yeah, allegedly, I know.’
Her cousin went on to write that the family has already spent $138,000 in legal fees’ but is now asking for help from ‘10,000 caring souls to donate $250.’
Oh no: The 47-year-old reality star was slammed by fans and called ‘disgusting’ after her cousin, Danny Filipe, organized a $2.5M crowdfunding campaign to cover Jen’s legal defense ahead of her October trial
Not so fast! Fans were quick to question the ask, with one follower writing: ‘This is absolutely disgusting and I have reported it to GoFundMe. I hope others have to. Clearly people know better because you have received a single donation
Honest approach: Another fan wrote they were ‘speechless’ and noted Jen had ‘zero shame right here’
Supporter: Jen liked the share on her cousin’s Instagram page
The hefty ask was due to ‘over 1 million documents in this case that must be immediately reviewed and analyzed by Jen’s lawyers before her case goes to trial.’
In addition to calling the Southern District of New York ‘the most expensive jurisdiction in the country to defend a lawsuit,’ he noted that ‘Jen has to have the economic wherewithal to fight the government’s lawyers, who have an open checkbook and can spend millions of dollars prosecuting this case.’
He added: ‘By defending this case and going to trial, Jen’s family has and will continue to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal costs, which includes hiring investigators to interview potential witnesses, hiring experts in various fields (economists, accountants, jury consultants, forensic computer and data analysts, etc.) and paying for hundreds of hours of legal research, trial exhibits and witness binders, etc.’
She broke her silence five days after the arrest and thanked her fans for ‘not believing the hype’ as she maintained her innocence.
‘Thank you for being loyal, believing in me and not believing the hype,’ she wrote in an Instagram Story with a few photos of her face.
Bye: The since-deleted Justice for Jen Shah GoFundMe campaign claimed that more than 10,000 people in the United States are ‘falsely accused and wrongfully convicted of crimes they did not convict’
‘This journey has showed me who my true friends are. All my love. #ShahSquad.’
Shah was arrested in Salt Lake City on March 30 and faces up to 30 years in prison for allegedly defrauding elderly people via a telemarketing scheme which New York prosecutors say went on for nine years.
As part of the conditions of her release, Shah is prevented from traveling outside of Utah or the United States without the permission of a pretrial officer, and ordered to surrender her passport.
She is also not allowed to use a credit card, obtain a new line of credit, or contact her co-accused assistant, Smith.
Tough break: As part of the conditions of her release, Shah is prevented from traveling outside of Utah or the United States without the permission of a pretrial officer, and ordered to surrender her passport. She is also not allowed to use a credit card, obtain a new line of credit, or contact her co-accused assistant, Smith
RHOSLC: Cameras were reportedly rolling on the second season of the hit Bravo show when Jen was arrested as the women — including Meredith Marks, Lisa Barlow, Heather Gay, Whitney Rose and Mary Cosby — made their way to Vail, Colorado, according to US Weekly
‘Jennifer Shah, who portrays herself as a wealthy and successful businessperson on ‘reality’ television, and Stuart Smith, who is portrayed as Shah’s ‘first assistant,’ allegedly generated and sold ‘lead lists’ of innocent individuals for other members of their scheme to repeatedly scam,’ Manhattan U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss said.
‘In actual reality and as alleged, the so-called business opportunities pushed on the victims by Shah, Smith, and their co-conspirators were just fraudulent schemes, motivated by greed, to steal victims’ money. Now, these defendants face time in prison for their alleged crimes.’
Cameras were reportedly rolling on the second season of the hit Bravo show when Jen was arrested as the women — including Meredith Marks, Lisa Barlow, Heather Gay, Whitney Rose and Mary Cosby — made their way to Vail, Colorado, according to US Weekly.
‘Jen was filming with a few of the other women present when she was arrested. The women were completely shocked when Jen was taken away,’ an insider revealed.
‘Jen’s future this season remains unclear,’ the source added. ‘If she will go back to filming or not, no one is really sure, she hasn’t resumed filming yet.’
Shah’s husband Sharieff, a football coach at the University of Utah, regularly appears by her side on RHOSLC and the couple has two sons Omar, 17, and Sharrieff Jr., 26.
Family: Shah’s husband Sharieff, a football coach at the University of Utah, regularly appears by her side on RHOSLC and the couple has two sons Omar, 17, and Sharrieff Jr., 26
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