Rapper and singer Sean Kingston and his mother have been indicted in South Florida on federal charges of committing more than $1 million worth of fraud.
Kingston, 34, and his mother, 61-year-old Janice Turner, made their first appearances Friday in federal court, according to court records. A Miami grand jury returned an indictment earlier this month accusing Kingston and his mother of participating in a scheme to defraud victims of high-end specialty vehicles, jewelry and other goods through the use of fraudulent documents.
Kingston was booked into the Broward County jail on similar state charges last month following a May 23 arrest at Fort Irwin, an Army training base in California’s Mojave Desert where he was performing. Turner was arrested the same day as her son, when a SWAT team raided his rented mansion in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
According to the federal indictment, Kingston and Turner falsely claimed that they had executed bank wire or other monetary payment transfers for high-end items when no such transfers had taken place. Investigators said Kingston and Turner then kept over $1 million worth of fraudulently purchased items despite not paying for them.
The warrants for the state charges say that from October to March, they stole almost $500,000 in jewelry, more than $200,000 from Bank of America, $160,000 from a Cadilac Escalade dealer, more than $100,000 from First Republic Bank and $86,000 from the maker of customized beds.
The Jamaican American performer had a No. 1 hit with “Beautiful Girls” in 2007 and collaborated with Justin Bieber on the song “Eenie Meenie.”
Robert Rosenblatt, an attorney for Kingston and his mother, didn’t immediately respond to a message seeking comment from The Associated Press. He previously said they looked forward to addressing the charges and were “confident of a successful resolution.”
Kingston, whose legal name is Kisean Anderson, was already serving a two-year probation sentence for trafficking stolen property.
His mother pleaded guilty in 2006 to bank fraud for stealing over $160,000 and served nearly 1.5 years in prison, according to federal court records.
Latest Stories
-
Bawumia joins thousands in Kumasi for burial prayers for Ashanti Regional Imam
31 minutes -
Blue Gold Bogoso Prestea Limited challenges government actions in court
58 minutes -
Patrick Atangana Fouda: ‘A hero of the fight against HIV leaves us’
2 hours -
Trinity Oil MD Gabriel Kumi elected Board Chairman of Chamber of Oil Marketing Companies
2 hours -
ORAL campaign key to NDC’s election victory – North America Dema Naa
3 hours -
US Supreme Court to hear TikTok challenge to potential ban
3 hours -
Amazon faces US strike threat ahead of Christmas
3 hours -
Jaguar Land Rover electric car whistleblower sacked
3 hours -
US makes third interest rate cut despite inflation risk
3 hours -
Fish processors call for intervention against illegal trawling activities
4 hours -
Ghana will take time to recover – Akorfa Edjeani
4 hours -
Boakye Agyarko urges reforms to revitalise NPP after election defeat
4 hours -
Finance Minister skips mini-budget presentation for third time
4 hours -
‘ORAL’ team to work gratis – Ablakwa
5 hours -
Affirmative Action Coalition condemns lack of gender quotas in Transition, anti-corruption teams
5 hours