Sean Kingston jailed

Perth Now

19 hours ago

Sean Kingston has been sentenced to three-and-a-half years in prison.
The Beautiful Girls hitmaker - whose real name is Kisean Paul Anderson - and his mother, Janice Turner, were found guilty of five counts of wire fraud in March following a federal trial and faced up to 20 years in jail for each charge.
But on Friday (15.08.25), Sean apologised in front of Judge David Leibowitz and said he had learned a lesson, and though his attorney asked the 35-year-old star be allowed to leave and surrender at a later date for health reasons, the judge refused and he was immediately taken into custody.
His attorney, Zeljka Bozanic, told Entertainment Weekly the musician is taking the situation "as a learning experience".
The lawyer said in a statement: "We respect the Court's decision and the judicial process. We are content that the Court did not go with the government's request of five years and sentenced Sean below the sentencing guidelines instead. It is important to note that most of the restitution in this case was paid back, even before these charges were brought.
"Sean is taking this as a learning experience and will continue moving forward in a positive direction. We are actively reviewing all available options, including potential appeals, to ensure his rights are fully protected."
Janice - who had previously pleaded guilty to bank fraud for stealing $160,000 and served more than a year in prison - was sentenced to five years behind bars last month.
The mother and son had denied allegations of falsely claiming they had sent bank transfers for luxury items worth more than $1 million but were found guilty in March.
After the verdict was reached, Sean was placed on home detention, though he has to meet bond requirements, including a $200,000 surety bond in cash, as well as putting up a relative's $500,000 house.
However, Janice was reminded into federal custody and was taken away by US Marshals as her son cried.
He told them: "Protect my mother.'
While Sean opted not to testify on his own behalf, his mother did, and the judge explained she was remanded as a flight risk in part due to her testimony.
He said Janice - who has similar past convictions - had shown she was the "fixer, the nerve centre" and in control of the fraud scheme but her son's defence depicted him as "a child" with no knowledge of finances.
Several alleged victims had claimed to have been swindled out of items including a bulletproof Cadillac, a huge TV and expensive watches, and all items had been seized in a raid on Sean's home.
The United States Attorney's Office in the Southern District of Florida, previously explained the rapper and his mother's charges stemmed from their alleged involvement in "a scheme to defraud victim sellers of high-end specialty vehicles, jewellery, and other goods purchased by the defendants through the use of fraudulent documents."
The office went on to state the pair "unjustly enriched themselves by falsely representing that they had executed bank wire or other monetary payment transfers as payment for vehicles, jewellery, and other goods purchased by the defendants, when in fact no such bank wire or other monetary payment transfers had been executed by the purported banks, and thereafter the defendants retained or attempted to retain the vehicles, jewellery and other goods despite non-payment. Through the execution of this scheme, the defendants obtained in excess of $1 million in property."
The pair were accused of having stolen almost $500,000 in jewellery, more than $200,000 from Bank of America, more than $100,000 from First Republic Bank, $160,000 from a Cadillac Escalade dealer and $86,000 from a maker of customised beds.
At the time of his arrest last year, the musician was serving two years probation for trafficking stolen property.