Audio By Carbonatix
Rapper Sean Kingston was sentenced on Friday to three and a half years in prison after being convicted of a $1 million fraud scheme in South Florida.
Kingston, whose legal name is Kisean Paul Anderson, and his mother, Janice Eleanor Turner, were each convicted by a federal jury in March of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and four counts of wire fraud. Turner was sentenced last month to five years in prison.
Before U.S. Judge David Leibowitz handed down Kingston’s sentence, the singer apologised to the judge and said he had learned from his actions.
His attorney asked if he could self-surrender at a later date due to health issues, but the judge ordered him taken into custody immediately. Kingston, who was wearing a black suit and white shirt, removed his suit jacket and was handcuffed and led from the courtroom.
Kingston, 35, and his mother were arrested in May 2024 after a SWAT team raided Kingston’s rented mansion in suburban Fort Lauderdale.
Turner was taken into custody during the raid, while Kingston was arrested at Fort Irwin, an Army training base in California’s Mojave Desert, where he was performing.
According to court records, Kingston used social media from April 2023 to March 2024 to arrange purchases of high-end merchandise.
After negotiating deals, Kingston would invite the sellers to one of his high-end Florida homes and promise to feature them and their products on social media.
Investigators said that when it came time to pay, Kingston or his mother would text the victims fake wire receipts for the luxury merchandise, which included a bulletproof Escalade, watches, and a 19-foot (5.9-meter) LED TV, investigators said.
When the funds never cleared, victims often contacted Kingston and Turner repeatedly, but were either never paid or received money only after filing lawsuits or contacting law enforcement.
Kingston, who was born in Florida and raised in Jamaica, shot to fame at age 17 with the 2007 hit “Beautiful Girls,” which laid his lyrics over Ben E. King’s 1961 song “Stand By Me.” His other hits include 2007’s “Take You There” and 2009’s “Fire Burning.”
Latest Stories
-
OSP is not luxury but a constitutional necessity -Senyo Hosi
28 minutes -
32 Foreigners arrested in Kasoa romance scam bust
31 minutes -
Engineer leverages U.S. research to build exportable digital twin frameworks for energy resilience
45 minutes -
Senyo Hosi urges support for Office of the Special Prosecutor
48 minutes -
My issue is with the constitution, not the individual – Adamtey on calls to scrap OSP
48 minutes -
Former PSRS boss warns NDC against declaring early economic victory
50 minutes -
Photos: Ghanaians honour late defence minister Dr. Edward Kofi Omane Boamah at Jackson park
59 minutes -
Calls to abolish OSP are hasty and unwarranted – Bobby Banson
1 hour -
Kpandai rerun: Courts must act swiftly to prevent costly parlimentary election – Boafo Akuffo
1 hour -
Serwaa Broni breaks down at Daddy Lumba’s funeral
1 hour -
Legal expert urges Alban Bagbin to reinforce authority amid parliamentary chaos
2 hours -
Sanctions needed to curb rising disorder in parliament – Victor Adawudu
2 hours -
Kpandai re-run chaos: Senyo Hosi urges calm and consensus
2 hours -
NDC does not need Kpandai seat to assert power – Senyo Hosi
2 hours -
Daddy Lumba: Sights & sounds as Ghanaians mourn legend at Kumasi funeral
2 hours
