Joe Giudiceis a free man — with a new look.
On Friday, PEOPLE confirmed that theReal Housewives of New Jerseystar, 49, wasfreed from ICE custodyand flew to Rome, where he will continue to appeal hisdeportation order.
“He lost the weight from changing his diet, working out and no drinking,” the source says.
Before going to prison in March 2016, Joe told PEOPLE he was looking forward to quitting drinking while serving his time after he found himselfdeveloping bad habitswhile wifeTeresa Guidicewas completing her own prison sentence for the same crimes.
“I am not going to be able to drink for a while, which is good because I don’t even know when it’s been since I haven’t had a drink,” he told PEOPLE in February 2016. “It’s been a long time.”
“Definitely the whole year I drank every day a couple of bottles at night just to go to bed,” he said.
“He’s running, he’s doing 1,000 sit-ups a day,” she told PEOPLE. “So he lifts weights and that’s what he’s doing. Just running, working out and then a lot of push-ups and sit-ups. He’s doing over 1,000 sit-ups.”
Joe used his workouts as an escape during his time behind bars, his wife said.
“I said just get your mind and body in check. It’ll be good for you,” Teresa explained. “He’s been through a lot with losing his dad and then me gone, it’s a lot.”
On the day of Joe’s release, his daughters shared sweet photos of their dad on social media.
His eldest child,Gia Giudice, posted a throwback photo of herself giving her dad a hug.
“Facetime you soon daddy❤️🙏🏻,” Gia, 18, captioned the post.
Gia Giudice/Instagram
Meanwhile, Gia’s sisterMilania Giudice, 14, shared a family photo of Joe and his four daughters to her Instagram Story, writing, “love you forever.”
On Saturday morning, Gia shared an update, posting a screenshot of a FaceTime conversation with Joe to her Instagram Story.
“One of the happiest moments of my life!” she captioned the image, which is the first new photo of Joe in over three years. “Love you so much daddy, so happy your [sic] free! see you so soon.”
After Joe was released on Friday, his lawyer James J. Leonard Jr. told PEOPLE in a statement thathe called Teresa and Giafrom the plane.
“He is en route to Italy right now. He spoke to Teresa and Gia from the plane and he is extremely happy to be released, more than words can describe,” Leonard said.
He added that they willcontinue to appealJoe’s deportation order while he is in Italy: “We are still fighting and it is his desire to return home to the United States to be reunited with his family.”
source: people.com
