Rapper Sean Kingston sentenced to 42 months in prison for $1m fraud

Singer Sean Kingston was sentenced Friday to three and a half years in prison for a $1 million fraud scheme in which he used his fame to obtain luxury items without paying.

Kingston, whose legal name is Kisean Paul Anderson, and his mother, Janice Eleanor Turner, were convicted in March of conspiracy and wire fraud. Turner was sentenced last month to five years.

Before U.S. Judge David Leibowitz delivered the sentence, Kingston apologized in court, saying he had learned from his actions. His attorney requested a delayed surrender due to health issues, but the judge ordered him taken into custody immediately.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Marc Anton said Kingston “clearly doesn’t like to pay and relies on his celebrity status to defraud his victims,” describing him as a man “addicted to his celebrity lifestyle.” Anton added: “He is a thief and a conman, plain and simple.”

Defense attorney Zeljka Bozanic argued Kingston, 35, had “the mentality of a teenager” since his rise to fame and little understanding of finances. “No one showed him how to invest his money,” she said, adding that Kingston has begun repaying victims and intends to pay back all losses.

Judge Leibowitz rejected claims that Kingston was naive but credited him for accepting responsibility, contrasting his conduct with his mother’s testimony, which he called obstruction.

Kingston and Turner were arrested in May 2024 after a SWAT raid on his Florida mansion. Prosecutors said from April 2023 to March 2024, Kingston lured sellers through social media, promising exposure in exchange for luxury goods, then sent fake wire receipts for items such as a bulletproof Escalade, watches, and a 19-foot LED TV.

Born in Florida and raised in Jamaica, Kingston rose to fame at 17 with the 2007 hit Beautiful Girls, followed by Take You There and Fire Burning.

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