As previously reported, Sheree Whitfield of The Real Housewives of Atlanta is following in the footsteps of her felon loving predecessor and has fallen head over heels for inmate Tyrone Gilliams.

[READ: Sheree Whitfield & Prison Inmate Tyrone Gilliams Make It Official… (PHOTOS)]

While it seems that Whitfield made some rash decisions with her jailhouse wedding, word on the curb is that she may? have actually been covering her own ass.

The story is actually bigger than Whitfield choosing to marry an inmate.? In fact, Sheree could find herself involved in a huge scandal that could jeopardize her own freedom!

Details below…

For the record, the same source who sent MTO pics of Sheree and her new ‘hubby’ sent them to me as well but I overlooked the email…? *sigh* but that’s all besides the point.

If you revisit my initial post about Sheree’s love connection, I leaked a bit of tea about how the self-professed ‘bone collector’ had been spotted visiting her prison bae while he was serving time in Atlanta (click HERE if you missed that).

Tyrone, who is serving time for scamming millions in connection with multiple investment fraud schemes, is now housed in Jackson, Mississippi, but word on the curb is that his transfer was due to his involvement in that Atlanta federal prison break scandal.

It was huge news in Atlanta a few months back about how federal inmates had been sneaking out of jail through a fence on a regular bases and returning back to the prison with contraband just in time for head count.

The AJC first reported on the incident, stating:

Inmates at the minimum-security prison camp adjacent to the U.S. Penitentiary in southeast Atlanta have been escaping for years through holes in the fence, but returning with contraband such as cellphones, cigarettes and possibly handguns, according to a federal complaint.

There’s no clue as to how long the inmate ‘escapes’ had been going on, but? CNN reported about an investigation that began back in 2013 that revealed inmates had been discovered “temporarily escaping”?from the medium-security US Penitentiary in the city.

In addition to obtaining contraband, the inmates also routinely paid visits to family members and significant others while on their ‘unauthorized furlough.

While only one prisoner was caught, it’s clear that the ‘temporary escapes’ was a widespread issue.

READ: Court records on alleged escapes

My sources say that Tyrone was shipped out of Atlanta in January 2017 to Jackson, MS for allegedly being a part of that escape ring and that Sheree was reportedly questioned by authorities about the scandal as well.

That explains why she denied being ‘engaged’ to her prison bae when asked by Andy Cohen back in December 2016. She was totally trying to protect her man!

VIDEO: Sheree Whitfield Addresses Engagement “Rumors” on WWHL

All this drama could all play out for your viewing pleasure.? I’ve heard that Sheree is head over heels in love with her prison bae and while prison records state he’s scheduled for release in 2022, Whitfield is reportedly looking forward to him being free by the end of the year.

What are your thoughts about Sheree’s sticky situation?