Sean Kingston Sentenced to Prison After Asking for House Arrest in Fraud Case

Sean Kingston has been sentenced following his conviction earlier this year on fraud charges.

Friday, the 35-year-old “Beautiful Girls” singer was given 3.5 years in prison, per NBC and the Associated Press. The singer was taken into custody to begin his sentence after the sentencing was announced. Previously, Kingston’s mother, Janice Turner, was sentenced to five years. Turner, like her son, was found guilty by a federal jury of wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud in April. At the time, both Kingston and Turner were facing up to 20 years on each count.

Prosecutors say that over the course of roughly a year, starting in April 2023, Kingston, born Kisean Anderson, amassed more than $1 million of products from various luxury vendors through the use of fake wire receipts. In the days leading up to Kingston’s arrest, however, his legal team argued “most of the victims were paid back,” a fact they say supported their push for a home confinement-focused sentence.

"He’s a 35-year-old man and led a celebrity lifestyle…And can no longer afford that today," said Assistant U.S. Attorney Marc Anton. "He is a thief through and through." During the trial, Kingston's mother confessed that she falsified wire transfers in an effort to protect her son. Evidence presented at the trial included a text her sent to her that read, "I told you to make [a] fake receipt."

As detailed in court docs viewed by Complex, Kingston’s lawyers pointed to multiple past cases to underscore their arguments, noting that not only could determent from future offenses be accomplished “by a reasonable term of home detention,” but that house arrest could serve as a “substantial punishment” for their client’s crimes on its own.

Further bolstering the lawyers’ argument were several letters to the judge, including from Kingston’s sister and a person experiencing homelessness who said the singer had provided food and clothing.

For now, Kingston has not publicly addressed these developments on social media or elsewhere. The Yung Q-featuring “Good Go Bad,” the latest release, arrived on streaming services back in July.

“I apologize, I apologize, I’ve learned from my actions," Kingston said upon being sentenced, apologizing to the judge for his involvement in the scheme. "All I’m asking for is to accept my apology to the court."

Kingston was immediately taken into custody, despite requests from his attorney for him to self-surrender at a later date due to unspecified health issues.

One of the individuals who testified against Kingston included jeweler Moshe Edery, who said he sold a Audemars Piguet watch to him $285,000. Kingston sent a screenshot that showed a fake receipt for a wire transfer, and Edery was later fired from his job for falling for the scam