R&B singer Sean Kingston and his mother Janice Turner are now at the center of a federal fraud trial that kicked off this week in Miami, where they stand accused of scamming multiple local businesses out of over $1 million in luxury goods and services.
According to The Sun, the 35-year-old recording artist and his mother are facing serious allegations involving a staggering list of high-end items that prosecutors say were acquired through deceptive means.
Authorities claim the duo purchased the goods using bank wires and payment transfers, but when the payments didn’t go through, they allegedly kept the items anyway.
The list of alleged fraudulent purchases includes:
- A custom luxury bed worth more than $86,000 from upscale bedding company Maree
- A Cadillac Escalade valued at $159,701.49 from a high-end car dealership
- Over $480,000 worth of jewelry and watches from multiple luxury jewelers
- Additional purchases from a luxury furniture store and a home entertainment company specializing in TVs and custom systems
Prosecutors say Kingston and Turner were able to convince sellers to hand over the items by name-dropping other celebrities, using their fame and connections to gain trust—only to allegedly fail to complete the transactions.
The allegations stem from events that took place in 2023 and were detailed in the arrest warrants issued earlier this year. The items were reportedly delivered before vendors realized they hadn’t been properly compensated.
Kingston, best known for his early 2000s hits like “Beautiful Girls” and “Fire Burning,” has yet to publicly address the ongoing case. Neither Kingston nor his mother has entered a plea at this time.
If convicted, the charges could carry serious penalties, including prison time and financial restitution.
The trial continues in Miami’s federal court, where prosecutors are working to prove what they claim was a calculated scheme to defraud multiple businesses out of six-figure sums, using celebrity influence as the ultimate calling card.