Sean Kingston, his mother arrested on multiple fraud charges after South Florida raid

Grethel Aguila, Devoun Cetoute
·3 min read
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Reggae artist Sean Kingston was arrested in California on multiple fraud and theft charges Thursday — just hours after his mother also was handcuffed when law enforcement agencies raided his rented South Florida mansion.

Police in Fort Irwin, California, apprehended Kingston, whose legal name is Kisean Paul Anderson, on various charges that stem from a Broward Sheriff’s Office warrant, according to BSO. Details of the alleged crimes that he committed remain unclear.

The “Beautiful Girls” singer will be booked into jail in San Bernardino, CA.

Kingston’s arrest was part of an ongoing investigation that began Thursday morning, when Broward Sheriff’s Office detectives and Davie police SWAT blitzed a seven-bedroom, 7,966 sq ft. home on the 4600 block of Southwest 178th Ave. in Southwest Ranches. It culminated with deputies executing search and arrest warrants at the property.

Broward Sheriff’s Office personnel move items in the garage at Sean Kingston’s Southwest Ranches home on Thursday, May 23, 2024. A woman named Janice Turner, 61, was arrested on “numerous fraud and theft charges,” during the raid at the sprawling white mansion in the 4600 block of Southwest 178th Avenue, spokesperson Carey Codd said in a media release. Turner is Kingston’s mother, according to reports. (Amy Beth Bennett / South Florida Sun Sentinel)

Early Thursday afternoon, BSO deputies said they detained Janice Turner, Kingston’s 61-year-old mother, in connection to the probe. As of Thursday night, she was arrested and booked into the Broward Sheriff’s Office Main Jail.

She faces three counts of criminal use of personal identification information, two counts of grand theft, one count of organized scheme to defraud and one count of issuing insufficient funds check.

“People love negative energy!” the Jamaican-American recording artist asserted in an Instagram story. “I am good and so is my mother!.. my lawyers are handling everything as we speak.”

Sean Kingston’s Southwest Ranches home is shown during a raid by the Broward Sheriff’s Office on Thursday, May 23, 2024. A woman named Janice Turner, 61, was arrested on “numerous fraud and theft charges,” during the raid at the sprawling white mansion in the 4600 block of Southwest 178th Avenue, spokesperson Carey Codd said in a media release. Turner is Kingston’s mother, according to reports. (Amy Beth Bennett / South Florida Sun Sentinel)

In early May, Turner was sued in Broward County Circuit Court for breaching a lease agreement, records show. Turner was renting a Fort Lauderdale home but left the property before the lease expired and didn’t pay four months worth of rent, which totaled $100,000.

As for Kingston, he, too, has faced legal trouble in recent months.

In February, he was sued by Ver Ver Entertainment for more than $100,000 after the company accused him of dodging bills for the sale and installation of a 232-inch TV, according to a filing by attorney Dennis Card Jr.

The company, which sells high-end TVs, alleges that Kingston contacted them via Instagram and made false statements, including that he would film promotional videos with Justin Bieber.

But Kingston, the filing notes, didn’t film the videos. On top of that, he never paid the full cost of the TV — despite several promises.

“Unbeknownst to Plaintiff, [Kingston] has a long history of engaging in fraudulent conduct,” Card said in the lawsuit.

Trail of overdue bills?

Kingston’s alleged history of missing payments, particularly for jewelry, is well-documented in court records and media coverage.

Miami jewelry company Haimov Jewelers, which has featured promos with Pompano Beach rapper Kodak Black, has already taken legal action against Kingston three times since 2009, according to records. In court documents, Kingston blamed his mother for the mix-up, though he was ordered to pay almost $100,000 for the jewelry.

READ MORE: Sean Kingston likes his bling, but apparently doesn’t like to pay for it, says lawsuit

A U-Haul is seen leaving Sean Kingston’s Southwest Ranches home on Thursday, May 23, 2024. A woman named Janice Turner, 61, was arrested on “numerous fraud and theft charges,” during the raid at the sprawling white mansion in the 4600 block of Southwest 178th Avenue, spokesperson Carey Codd said in a media release. Turner is Kingston’s mother, according to reports. (Amy Beth Bennett / South Florida Sun Sentinel)

Avi Da Jeweler, in a 2014 lawsuit also filed in New York federal court, accused Kingston and his mother of skipping out on more than $225,000 of unpaid jewelry bills between 2008 and 2013. The jeweler was eventually awarded more than $355,000 for the merchandise, which included several diamond-encrusted watches, rings and chains.

In 2023, Kingston was ordered to complete almost two years of probation for trafficking in stolen property, according to Florida prison records. The charge, per reports, was connected to Kingston receiving jewelry but not paying for it.

A man walks past a Ferrari in the driveway at Sean Kingston’s Southwest Ranches home on Thursday, May 23, 2024. A woman named Janice Turner, 61, was arrested on “numerous fraud and theft charges,” during the raid at the sprawling white mansion in the 4600 block of Southwest 178th Avenue, spokesperson Carey Codd said in a media release. Turner is Kingston’s mother, according to reports. (Amy Beth Bennett / South Florida Sun Sentinel)

Kingston, a 34-year-old South Florida native, is best known for hit songs “Fire Burning” and “Eenie Meenie,” with Justin Bieber. During the late 2000s, he became a best-selling reggae artist, with several Billboard Top 10 singles.

His music career temporarily halted in 2011 after he was severely injured in a crash on his Sea Doo watercraft near the MacArthur Causeway. He suffered a torn aorta, broken jaw, fractured wrist and had water in his lungs, the Miami Herald reported at the time.

Following his recovery, he released two albums.