The SWAT raid on singer Sean Kingston’s South Florida home last week that led to both his and his mother’s arrests can be traced to a months-long theft and fraud scheme, police say.
The “Beautiful Girls” and “Fire Burning” pop star, 34, and his mother, Janice Turner, 61, face 10 charges of grand theft, fraud and criminal use of personal identification information, according to a Broward Sheriff’s Office arrest warrant reviewed by The Times. The warrant accuses the singer and his mother of stealing more than $1 million in money, jewelry and other goods from several businesses from October through March.
A legal representative for Kingston did not immediately respond to The Times’ request for comment Tuesday.
The warrant alleges that the mother and son swindled more $480,000 worth of jewelry from an individual, a Cadillac Escalade worth nearly $160,000 and furniture that cost upward of $86,500. Kingston and his mother also allegedly stole more than $200,000 from Bank of America and more than $100,000 from First Republic Bank.
Kingston was also accused of violating the terms of his two-year probation for trafficking stolen property in a 2020 incident involving an unpaid jewelry bill,
The singer was arrested in San Bernardino County on Thursday, hours after a SWAT team raided his home in Southwest Ranches, an affluent suburb of Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Law enforcement officers were seen after the raid loading a van with goods. Video from NBC6 South Florida showed several luxury vehicles — including a Mercedes-Benz, a pair of Bentleys and a Tesla — parked outside the property. Turner was detained in Florida amid the raid and was held on a $160,000 bond.
Before his arrest, Kingston addressed the presence of law enforcement at his home, writing in a since-deleted Instagram story, “people love negative energy.”
“I am good, and so is my mother!..my lawyers are handling everything as we speak,” he added.
At the time of the raid, Robert Rosenblatt, attorney for the singer and Turner, said he was “aware of the allegations” against his clients and was “confident of a successful resolution.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
