Sean Kingston and his mother, Janice Turner, have been found guilty of fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud, concluding a federal trial in Broward County, Florida.
After a week-long trial which started on March 24th, a jury took just three and a half hours to decide that Kingston, 35, and his mother ran a scheme to scam luxury brands, jewelers, and even a home entertainment company out of more than $1 million.
Now, Kingston, whose real name is Kisean Anderson,is on house arrest with an electronic monitor, while Turner was taken straight into custody after the judge ruled she was a flight risk. He also has to put up a $500,000 home bond and $200,000 in cash to stay out of jail for now, NBC Miami reports.
As ESSENCE previously reported prosecutors say they used Kingston’s celebrity status to get expensive goods and services without paying. The singer also reportesly told a home entertainment company that he was Justin Bieber’s business partner so he could get a $150,000 home theater system installed for free. The catch? Bieber had no idea about the deal, and the company never got their money.
During the trial, Fort Lauderdale jeweler Moshe Edery testified that he lost his credibility after that Kingston promised a $285,000 payment for jewelry—but the transfer never came through.
“I’m being scammed,” Edery told the court, according to NBC Miami.
Turner played her part, too. Prosecutors say she made sure the expensive items were delivered, then sent fake wire transfers in return.Kingston and Turner were first arrested in May 2024, with their formal charges coming in July—one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and five counts of wire fraud.
During the trial, their defense team argued there was no real evidence they meant to scam people and even claimed that some victims eventually got their money back.
But the jury clearly wasn’t buying it. Sentencing is set for July 11th.
