14-05-2025
Mormon Wives star Jessi Ngatikaura reveals shock run-in with Jen Shah prior to her sentencing
Even though she may be in prison, no one has ever forgotten former Real Housewives of Salt Lake City alum Jen Shah - including Secret Lives of Mormon Wives cast member Jessi Ngatikaura, who once had a wild-run in with the star right before she was sentenced in 2023.
Shah, who was a member of the Bravo hit series for three seasons, was sentenced to 78 months in prison for 'running a nationwide telemarketing fraud scheme,' which primarily targeted elderly and vulnerable people.
After months of proclaiming her innocence, Shah finally plead guilty in July 2023 for conspiracy to commit wire fraud, and is currently locked up with Theranos fraudster Elizabeth Holmes.
However, according to Ngatikaura, Shah was hanging out at the hair salon she owns in Pleasant Grove, Utah, just a few weeks before she was sent off to Bryan Federal Prison Camp in Texas.
Ngatikaura, who owns JZ Styles, recalled looking at the security cameras in her salon one day to find Shah in her break room eating pizza.
'I, like, ran over to her,' the Secret Lives star told
'I'm like, I have to meet her because she was getting her hair done by one of my stylists, who was her friend,' Ngatikaura said.
'She was so nice,' she continued of Shah.
Shah, who was a member of the Bravo hit series for three seasons, was sentenced to 78 months in prison for 'running a nationwide telemarketing fraud scheme,' which primarily targeted elderly and vulnerable people
Of course, Shah isn't the only Real Housewives of Salt Lake City that the Mormon ladies have met since skyrocketing to fame.
Ngatikaura and Layla Taylor have met Lisa Barlow, and have become friendly with Whitney Rose as well, who gets her hair done at JZ Styles.
'Utah is honestly bigger than you think,' Taylor explained.
'It's like close knit in the way that everyone knows each other, like [we don't] bump into each other that often.'
But while they may not see their fellow reality TV show stars out and about in town, it's a different story for the Mormon Wives cast, who are basically attached at the hip.
The new season of their hit show premieres on Hulu on May 15, and according to Ngatikaura and Taylor, it's even better than the first season.
The series follows the lives of a group of TikTok famous, Mormon mom influencers living in Utah, including Taylor Frankie Paul, who outed the clique for 'soft swinging' with each other and their husbands in 2022.
It also explored some relationship drama, as Paul and her boyfriend at the time, Dakota Mortensen, were expecting their first baby, and Jen and Zach Affleck dealt with their own tumultuous marriage.
Ngatikaura said that the trailer for the second season doesn't even do it justice, teasing that there were two parties specifically where things got way out of hand
Things will get even crazier this season, as three of the ladies are pregnant, and they're joined by new cast member Miranda McWhorter, who was at the center of the swinging scandal with Paul.
'I feel like there's more drama, more friendships being tested, more relationship drama within marriages,' Taylor told
'I feel like honestly season one was frickin' good, but season two? Even better,' she added.
Ngatikaura said that the trailer for the second season doesn't even do it justice, teasing that there were two parties specifically where things got way out of hand.
But despite all the ups and downs, the ladies are enjoying their newfound fame after the show became an overnight success last September.
'I'm so, so grateful for this life that we have and being able to support my babies as a single mom is life-changing,' Taylor shared.
Viewers can catch the new season of The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives on Hulu on Thursday, May 15.
