FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Jamaican-American singer and rapper Sean Kingston and his mother, Janice Turner, appeared in Broward County court Monday morning, just days after they both ran away from a Local 10 reporter who tried to speak with them outside federal court.
Their arraignments were scheduled for 8:30 a.m. before Broward County Judge Ernest Kollra.
“We just did the arraignment, entered pleas of not guilty and asked for a jury trial,” the duo’s attorney, Robert Rosenblatt, told Local 10 after the hearing.
Kingston, born Kisean Anderson, was on probation for trafficking in stolen property when a Miami federal grand jury indicted him and his mother for wire fraud as part of a scheme estimated at $1 million.
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According to federal prosecutors, the duo was indicted because they “unjustly enriched themselves by falsely representing that they had executed bank wire or other monetary payment transfers as payment for vehicles, jewelry, and other goods.”
Kingston allegedly sent fake documents as proof that wire transfers had been completed and kept the items.
Over $500,000 worth of jewelry, $200,000 from Bank of America and $160,000 from a car dealership were allegedly obtained through the scheme with his mother.
Investigators also say Kingston would namedrop other big name celebrities and use his own fame to try to cut deals.
The duo had been accused of fraud before. In 2006, Turner pleaded guilty to bank fraud and served about a year and 6 months in prison. The new case includes Bank of America and First Republic Bank. According to the arrest warrants, the victims of the recent alleged fraud included a Cadillac Escalade dealer.
Records show the singer was arrested on May 23 during a trip to perform at the Fort Irwin National Training Center in California. Turner was also arrested on May 23 during a raid at her home in Southwest Ranches.
Their federal arraignment was at 11 a.m., on Friday, at 299 E. Broward Boulevard. They pleaded not guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and wire fraud charges, asked for a jury trial, and their defense started the discovery process.
The mother and son’s pending state case in Broward County concerns the same alleged fraud. They are facing charges of conducting an organized scheme to defraud, grand theft and identity theft.
Kingston’s attorney says because the charges are stemming from the same transactions, he hopes to get the federal or state case dismissed.
“We advised the court we are going to be filing some motions regarding double jeopardy issues in federal court and state court,” Rosenblatt said.
The duo’s next hearing has been scheduled for Oct. 11.
The U.S. Secret Service and the Broward Sheriff’s Office investigated the cases.