Sean Kingston Was Sent to 3.5 Years in Prison
The Beautiful Girls hitmaker, whose actual name is Kisean Paul Anderson, and his mother, Janice Turner, were convicted in March on five counts of wire fraud after a federal trial. Each of the charges carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
However, Sean apologized in front of Judge David Leibowitz on Friday, August 15, and stated he had learnt his lesson. Although his lawyer requested that the 35-year-old singer be permitted to leave and turn himself in later for health reasons, the judge denied his request, and he was taken into custody right away.
Entertainment Weekly was informed by his lawyer, Zeljka Bozanic, that the musician is viewing the incident “as a learning experience.”
In a statement, the attorney said: “We respect the Court’s decision and the judicial process.” We are happy that the Court sentenced Sean below the recommended sentence parameters rather than granting the government’s request for a five-year term. Importantly, even prior to these accusations, the majority of the restitution in this case was reimbursed.
“Sean will keep going in the right way and is viewing this as a teaching moment. In order to make sure his rights are completely upheld, we are aggressively examining every alternative, including possible appeals.”
Last month, Janice was given a five-year prison sentence. Janice had already served more than a year in prison after entering a guilty plea to bank fraud for stealing $160,000.
In March, the mother and son were found guilty of lying about sending bank transactions for luxury goods valued at over $1 million, despite their denials of the charges.
Following the verdict, Sean was placed under home detention; nevertheless, he must fulfill bond requirements, which include posting a $500,000 house pledge from a relative and providing a $200,000 cash surety bond.
But as her kid sobbed, Janice was reminded to be in federal custody and removed by US Marshals.
“Protect my mother,” he said.
The judge clarified that his mother’s testimony was a contributing factor in her remand as a flight risk, even though Sean chose not to testify on his own behalf.
According to him, Janice, who has similar prior convictions, had demonstrated that she was the “fixer, the nerve center,” and in charge of the fraud plan, but her son’s defense portrayed him as “a child” who knows nothing about money.
During a raid on Sean’s house, a number of putative victims claimed to have been defrauded of valuables such as a bulletproof Cadillac, a large TV, and pricey watches.
Previously, the Southern District of Florida US Attorney’s Office clarified that the rapper and his mother were charged with participating in “a scheme to defraud victim sellers of high-end specialty vehicles, jewelry, and other goods purchased by the defendants through the use of fraudulent documents.”
“Unjustly enriched themselves by falsely representing that they had executed bank wire or other monetary payment transfers as payment for vehicles, jewelry, 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, jewelry, and other goods despite non-payment,” the office continued. By carrying out this plan, the defendants acquired more over $1 million worth of property.
In addition to nearly $500,000 in jewelry, the two were charged with stealing over $200,000 from Bank of America, over $100,000 from First Republic Bank, $160,000 from a Cadillac Escalade dealer, and $86,000 from a custom bed manufacturer.
For trafficking stolen property, the artist was on two years of probation when he was arrested last year.
