FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — Rapper Sean Kingston was sentenced to three and a half years on Friday and was convicted of a $1 million fraud scheme, and he lost fame and was unable to give sellers any extravagant items.
Kingston was convicted by federal ju judges in March for conspiracy to commit wire fraud and four-count wire fraud. Turner was sentenced to five years in prison last month.
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Before US Judge David Leibowitz handed over Kingston’s ruling, the singer apologized to a judge in a South Florida courtroom, saying he learned from his actions. His lawyer asked if he could have a self-salendar at a later date due to health issues, but the judge ordered him to be taken into custody immediately. Woman in a black suit and a white shirt, Kingston removed his suit jacket and was led by the court in handcuffs.
Kingston, 35, and his mother were arrested in May 2024 after the SWAT team raided a rental property in Kingston in suburban Fort Lauderdale. Turner was taken into custody during the attack, and Kingston was arrested at Fort Irwin, an army training base in the Moharb Desert, California, where he was performing.
According to court records, Kingston used social media from April 2023 to March 2024 to arrange for purchases of high-end products. After negotiating the deal, Kingston invited sellers to one of his high-end Florida homes and promised to showcase them and their products on social media.
Investigators said when it was time to pay, Kingston or his mother would text the victims on a fake wire receipt of gorgeous items, including bulletproof escalades, clocks and 19 feet (5.9 meters) LED TVs.
When the funds were not wiped out, the victims often repeatedly contacted Kingston and Turner, but were never paid or received money only after filing a lawsuit or contacting law enforcement.
Born in Florida and raised in Jamaica, Kingston was shot to fame at the age of 17 with the 2007 hit “Beautiful Girls,” and posted lyrics for the 1961 song “Stand by Me.” His other hits include 2007’s “Take You There” and 2009’s “Fire Burning.”
