Rapper Sean Kingston was sentenced Friday to three and a half years in federal prison after being convicted of a $1 million fraud scheme where he used his fame as leverage to scam sellers out of luxury goods — and then never paid a dime.
Kingston, born Kisean Paul Anderson, stood before U.S. Judge David Leibowitz in a South Florida courtroom, apologizing for his actions just moments before being taken into custody, according to the Associated Press.
Wearing a black suit and white shirt, Kingston removed his jacket, was handcuffed, and led out after the judge denied his attorney’s request for a delayed self-surrender due to health issues.
Kingston and his mother, Janice Eleanor Turner, were convicted back in March by a federal jury on charges including conspiracy to commit wire fraud and four counts of wire fraud. Turner was sentenced last month to five years in prison.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Marc Anton didn’t hold back, painting Kingston as someone who clung to the perks of celebrity long after his finances could support it.
“He clearly doesn’t like to pay and relies on his celebrity status to defraud his victims,” Anton said. “He is a thief and a conman, plain and simple.”
According to court records, Kingston used his social media clout from April 2023 to March 2024 to orchestrate deals with sellers of high-end merchandise. Prosecutors said he would lure them to luxury homes in Florida, promise promotional exposure, then send fake wire transfer receipts instead of actual payments.
Among the items scammed: a bulletproof Cadillac Escalade, designer watches, and a massive 19-foot LED TV.
Victims were often left in the dark when the money failed to come through, forced to chase the rapper and his mother through lawsuits or law enforcement action.
Defense attorney Zeljka Bozanic attempted to paint a different picture, saying Kingston’s fame came too early and left him ill-equipped to handle adult responsibilities.
“No one showed him how to invest his money,” she said. “Money went in and money went out on superficial things.”
She added that the 35-year-old has already started repaying some victims and intends to repay all of them after serving his sentence.
Still, Judge Leibowitz wasn’t buying the idea that Kingston was naive or clueless. While the judge acknowledged Kingston’s decision not to lie under oath — a contrast to his mother’s testimony, which he called “obstruction” — the sentence reflects what prosecutors described as a yearslong pattern of deceit and exploitation.
Kingston and Turner were arrested in May 2024 following a SWAT raid on his rented mansion in suburban Fort Lauderdale. Turner was taken into custody on-site, while Kingston was arrested the same day at Fort Irwin, a military training base in California’s Mojave Desert, where he had been performing.
Kingston rose to fame at just 17 with his 2007 hit “Beautiful Girls,” followed by chart-toppers like “Take You There” and “Fire Burning.” But prosecutors argue that the lifestyle he built off those early hits became the fuel for a fraud operation once the money ran dry.
Now, he’s headed to prison — not for a hit song, but for hitting up luxury sellers and leaving them high and dry.
