Joe.My.God. LGBT News
Page Six reports:
Embattled “Real Housewives of Salt Lake City” cast member Jen Shah was arrested by the feds Tuesday morning for allegedly ripping off hundreds of victims in a telemarketing scam.
Shah, 47, and her assistant Stuart Smith, 43, are expected to appear before US District Judge Dustin Pead on charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering — for which they face up to 30 years in prison on the top count, court papers say.
They allegedly ripped off hundreds of victims across the country, many of whom were over 55, encouraging them to invest in dubious online projects and selling bogus business services from 2012 to as recently as this month, according to an indictment.
Via press release from the Justice Department:
“Shah and Smith flaunted their lavish lifestyle to the public as a symbol of their ‘success.’ In reality, they allegedly built their opulent lifestyle at the expense of vulnerable, often elderly, working-class people. As alleged, disturbingly, Shah and Smith objectified their very real human victims as ‘leads’ to be bought and sold, offering their personal information for sale to other members of their fraud ring. SHAH and SMITH undertook significant efforts to conceal their roles in the Business Opportunity Scheme.
For example, SHAH and SMITH, among other things, incorporated their business entities using third parties’ names and instructed other Participants to do the same, used and directed others to use encrypted messaging applications to communicate with other Participants, instructed other Participants to send SHAH’s and SMITH’s shares of certain fraud proceeds to offshore bank accounts, and made numerous cash withdrawals structured to avoid currency transaction reporting requirements.
The New York Post reports:
The 47-year-old breakout star quickly became notorious for her flamboyant fashions and her friendship faux pas — both equally loud — on Season 1 of the latest entry in the “Real Housewives” franchise. However, the $3.9 million Salt Lake City rental she grandly passed off as the “SHAH SKI CHALET” actually never belonged to Shah.
“Is this what everyone is getting their g-string up their a** about bcuz their irrelevant [sic]? Or is it bcuz they wish they could afford to pay the rent plus own 4 other homes and have an apt in NYC?” Shah wrote in the comment section of a now-deleted Instagram post. The Post could find no documentation to substantiate Shah’s claims of owning four other properties and an apartment in New York City.