Jamaican-American singer Sean Kingston has been sentenced to three and a half years in prison for his role in a $1 million fraud scheme involving luxury goods.
Kingston, born Kisean Paul Anderson, was convicted in March alongside his mother, Janice Eleanor Turner, on charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and four counts of wire fraud. His mother was sentenced last month to five years in prison.
According to prosecutors, Kingston exploited his celebrity status to acquire expensive items such as a bulletproof Cadillac Escalade, luxury watches, and a 19-foot LED television without making payments.
Advertisement
READ MORE: My Ideal Man Must Have Private Jet, Yacht, No Baby Mama – Tiwa Savage
Court documents revealed that he used falsified wire transfer receipts and enticed sellers with promises of social media promotion.
U.S. District Judge David Leibowitz ordered Kingston to be taken into custody immediately following Friday’s sentencing in a South Florida courtroom, denying his lawyer’s request for a delayed surrender on the grounds of health concerns.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Marc Anton described Kingston as “a thief and a conman,” accusing him of leveraging his fame to cheat victims over several years. However, defense lawyer Zeljka Bozanic countered that the 35-year-old singer’s troubles were the result of financial irresponsibility, adding that he had begun paying back those he defrauded.
The singer and his mother were taken into custody in May 2024 after a SWAT team raided his rented mansion in Fort Lauderdale.
Kingston, born in Florida and raised in Jamaica, shot to fame at the age of 17 with his 2007 breakout hit Beautiful Girls.
