SAN BERNARDINO, California – Rapper and singer Sean Kingston on Tuesday waived his right to fight extradition in a California court and agreed to be turned over to authorities in Florida, where he and his mother are accused of committing fraud worth more than of one million dollars.
Kingston, 34, did not appear publicly in court but signed documents agreeing to skip extradition hearings, San Bernardino court and sheriff’s officials told The Associated Press.
He remained in a Southern California jail Tuesday afternoon, but sheriff’s officials will coordinate with the Broward County Sheriff’s Office to return him to Florida, sheriff’s spokeswoman Mara Rodriguez said. by email.
Kingston was arrested Thursday at Fort Irwin, an Army training base in California’s Mojave Desert where he was performing.
His mother, Janice Turner, 61, was arrested the same day when a SWAT team raided Kingston’s rented mansion in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
Kingston and Turner were accused of conducting an organized scheme for fraud, theft, identity theft and related crimes, according to arrest warrants issued by the Broward County Sheriff’s Office. The warrants allege they stole money, jewelry, a Cadillac Escalade and furniture.
The Jamaican-American artist had a No. 1 hit with “Beautiful Girls” in 2007 and collaborated with Justin Bieber on the song “Eenie Meenie.”
Robert Rosenblatt, a lawyer for Kingston and his mother, said Friday that they planned to forgo extradition, saying they hoped to address the charges in a Florida court and “are confident of a successful resolution.”
Emails sent to Rosenblatt for additional comment Tuesday were not immediately returned.
The warrants in the case say that from October through March they stole nearly $500,000 worth of jewelry, more than $200,000 from Bank of America, $160,000 from the Escalade dealer, more than $100,000 from First Republic Bank, $86,000 from custom bed manufacturer. Details were not provided.
Kingston, whose legal name is Kisean Anderson, was already on two years’ probation for trafficking in stolen property.
His mother pleaded guilty in 2006 to bank fraud for stealing more than $160,000 and served nearly 1.5 years in prison, according to federal court records.
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Associated Press writer Terry Spencer contributed from Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
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