Any potential plea deal for the Real Housewives of New Jersey stars Teresa and Joe Giudice in their 39 counts of fraud will include prison time, Breaking Celebrity News is exclusively reporting.

"Plea talks between the United States Attorney's Office and Teresa and Joe's lawyers haven't formally begun yet, but prosecutors are insisting that BOTH of them do time behind bars," a source told Radar.

"The government has a very, very strong case against the Giudices and wants to make an example of them. The Giudices will also be facing serious, significant financial penalties."