American-Jamaican singer Sean Kingston has been sentenced to three and a half years in prison for his role in a $1 million fraud scheme involving luxury goods.

 

Kingston, born Kisean Paul Anderson, was convicted in March on one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and four counts of wire fraud. His mother, Janice Eleanor Turner, who was convicted on the same charges, received a five-year prison sentence last month.

 

Prosecutors told the court that Kingston leveraged his celebrity status to acquire high-end items, including a bulletproof Cadillac Escalade, luxury watches, and a 19-foot LED television, without making payment. He allegedly presented falsified wire transfer receipts and enticed sellers with promises of social media promotion.

 

During sentencing in a South Florida courtroom on Friday, U.S. District Judge David Leibowitz ordered Kingston’s immediate remand, denying his lawyer’s request for delayed surrender on health grounds.

 

Assistant U.S. Attorney Marc Anton described Kingston as a “thief and a conman” who exploited his fame to swindle victims over several years. Defense attorney Zeljka Bozanic, however, argued that Kingston lacked financial discipline and had begun reimbursing some of the victims.

 

The singer and his mother were arrested in May 2024 following a SWAT raid on their rented mansion in Fort Lauderdale.

 

Kingston, now 35, shot to stardom at 17 with his 2007 global hit Beautiful Girls, but his career has been dogged by financial and legal troubles in recent years.