FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – The mother of recording artist Sean Kingston appeared in front of a Broward County judge Friday, facing several felony charges following her arrest Thursday. It came during a raid at her son’s multi-million-dollar Southwest Ranches home.
Janice Turner, 61, is facing a series of fraud and theft charges after Broward Sheriff’s Office deputies arrested her. So, too, is her son, known for his 2007 No. 1 single, “Beautiful Girls.”
Authorities said Kingston, whose real name is Kisean Anderson, was arrested in California Thursday without incident on a Broward County warrant in the area of Fort Irwin, an Army base in the desert about 150 miles northeast of Los Angeles. He’s awaiting extradition to South Florida.
On Friday, a judge ordered Turner to remain held on a $160,000 bond. According to jail records, in order to post bond, she’ll have to prove that the funds came from a legitimate source.
Local 10 News has learned that Kingston is scheduled to appear in court next week.
WATCH FOOTAGE OF KINGSTON’S ARREST BELOW:
Authorities haven’t elaborated on the basis for the charges.
However, in a civil complaint obtained from the Broward Clerk of Courts, a company by the name Ver Ver Entertainment alleges that Kingston partially paid for a 232-inch television and entertainment system but, following the installation, never paid for the product in full.
The complaint goes on to allege that Kingston used his name and celebrity status to scam people out of products and services — never paying for them.
Attorney Dennis Card, who represents Ver Ver Entertainment, spoke to Local 10 News on Thursday.
“He basically has a sales pitch that he goes through to defraud people. He induces them into giving him really expensive things,” Card said. “We know that our property is inside this house right here, so as soon as the raid takes place, we are going to have a crew of people in there to reassemble it and take it back to its rightful owner.”
Workers from the company were allowed to confiscate the TV system.
Panel by panel, pieces of the system were loaded into a U-Haul Thursday as deputies searched the property for more valuables, like high-priced watches.
Several bags of potential evidence were carried out of the property and what appeared to be more big-ticket items that were fully covered.
Kingston and his attorney are responding to the allegations.
“People love negative energy!” Kingston had posted on Instagram earlier Thursday. “I am good, and so is my mother! … My lawyers are handling everything as we speak.” The post was later taken down.
Robert Rosenblatt, an attorney representing the rapper and his mother, said, “We are aware of some of the allegations” being made against the two.
“We look forward to addressing these in court and are confident of a successful resolution for (Sean) and his mother,” Rosenblatt said in an email.