American singer, Sean Kingston whose real name is Kisean Anderson, and his mother, Janice Turner, 61, are facing serious legal trouble after being indicted by a federal grand jury on wire fraud charges.
According to a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida, the duo has been charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and five counts of wire fraud each, for allegedly participating in a scheme to defraud sellers of high-end vehicles, jewelry, and other luxury goods using fraudulent payment documents.
If convicted, Kingston and Turner could each face up to 20 years in prison for each count of wire fraud, potentially resulting in decades behind bars.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office alleges that Kingston and Turner “unjustly enriched themselves by falsely representing that they had executed bank wire or other monetary payment transfers” as payment for the goods, while in reality, no such transfers had been made.
Arrest warrants issued by the Broward County Sheriff’s Office, and reviewed by PEOPLE, claim that the duo stole nearly $500,000 in jewelry, $160,000 from an Escalade dealer, and $86,000 from a maker of customized beds, among other thefts.
In total, the fraudulent scheme is said to have netted them over $1 million in property.
Sean Kingston was arrested on May 23 in California following a raid on the South Florida mansion he was renting. His mother was taken into custody earlier the same day.
The arrests were part of an ongoing investigation stemming from a lawsuit filed in February by Ver Ver Entertainment, which alleged that Kingston had failed to pay for items purchased from the company.
