Jen Shah's husband reveals how the former RHOSLC star spent her 50th birthday in prison

Had things turned out differently, Jen Shah's 50th birthday would've been the typical over-the-top, drama-crammed, uncomfortably combative, Shah-mazing™ soirée for which the Real Housewives are known.

But there's nothing typical about Shah's current digs, having traded in the ski chalets of The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City for the Federal Prison Camp of Bryan, Tex. Shah's steadfast husband, Sharrieff Shah, described how his wife spent her half-centennial in a recent video posted to her Instagram account.

"I can say honestly that we are not where I thought we would be when my wife turned 50," the University of Utah football coach, 52, said. "But I can also sit in front of you and tell you with complete conviction that we are exactly where God intended us to be. So for that I am humbled and continually grateful."

He added, "For my wife's 50th birthday, I contacted 50 of her family members and closest friends and asked them to write a birthday text or message to me and I would give it to her. Well, she received them today, and it was more than I could have ever imagined."

Coach Shah also explained that "when you have a phone call with an individual who is incarcerated in a federal facility, the phone call lasts for 10 minutes. And my wife cried and cried tears of joy and appreciation for at least six and a half minutes."

He said he assured his wife that she is loved and has not been forgotten, and went on to thank fans for their support. "We appreciate every single person who has prayed for us, who has continued to send beautiful thoughts our way, and who have continued to love us unconditionally," he said.

Jen Shah was arrested in March 2021 on charges of wire fraud and money laundering as part of an alleged nationwide telemarketing scheme that defrauded hundreds of victims, many of them senior citizens.

After initially claiming innocence and pleading not guilty, Shah changed her plea to guilty on one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud in July 2022. She was sentenced to six and a half years in federal prison in January, and reported to FCP Bryan the following month.

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