Rapper Sean Kingston’s mother, Janice Turner, was arrested on Thursday, May 23, 2024, at Kingston’s rented home in an exclusive South Florida neighborhood. A SWAT team raided Kingston’s mansion earlier that day and officers were seen loading items into a van, according to the AP.
Kingston, meanwhile, was arrested later that Thursday on a Florida warrant near Los Angeles. In a lawsuit, VER VER Entertainment accused Kingston, legal name Kisean Anderson, of not paying them back for a $150,000 entertainment system. Miami news outlet WSVN says the items the SWAT team loaded into the van were part of the system, and Kingston’s May 2024 arrest was just the latest in the Jamaican-American musician’s legal problems, CBS News reported.
After he was arrested on fraud charges, Kingston shared an Instagram post which has since been deleted. “People love negative energy! I am good and so is my mother. My lawyers are handling everything as we speak,” it read, followed by two praying-hands emojis.
Sean Kingston’s mom faces fraud and theft charges
According to CBS News, Kingston’s mom, Janice Turner, also faces a slew of theft and fraud charges as part of an ongoing investigation. It’s unclear if Turner’s charges stem from her son’s lack of payment to VER VER Entertainment. Dennis Card, a company spokesperson, told CBS News, “[Kingston] lures people using his celebrity into having them release things without him paying for it. And then he simply never pays.”
The day after her arrest, Turner appeared at a $160,000 bond hearing in South Florida. Her attorney said his client posed no threat to the community and called the bond amount “a little excessive. I would ask the court to reconsider,” Turner’s lawyer said.
At that time, it was stipulated that any funds used to pay Turner’s bail would need to be fully collateralized. The source of the funds would need to be approved by a judge in Nebbia requirement to prevent funds gained illegally from being used to secure a prisoner’s release.
The judge also said that Turner must surrender her passport and not possess firearms, weapons, or ammunition. As for Kingston, he was held without bond in California while authorities prepared to transport him back to Florida.