Rapper and singer Sean Kingston waived his right to fight extradition in a California court on Tuesday and agreed to be handed over to authorities in Florida, where he and his mother are accused of defrauding more than a million dollars.
San Bernardino courts representatives and the sheriff told The Associated Press that Kingston, 34, did not make a public court appearance but signed papers agreeing not to attend the extradition hearing.
He remains in a Southern California jail as of Tuesday afternoon, but sheriff’s officials will coordinate with the Broward County Sheriff’s Office to transport him back to Florida, sheriff’s spokeswoman Mara Rodriguez said in an email.
Kingston was arrested on Thursday at Fort Irwin, an Army training base in California’s Mojave Desert, where he was protesting.
His mother, 61-year-old Janice Turner, was arrested the same day when a SWAT team raided Kingston’s rented home in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
According to arrest warrants issued by the Broward County Sheriff’s Office, Kingston and Turner are accused of running an organized scheme to commit fraud, grand theft, identity theft and related offenses. The warrants allege they stole money, jewelry, a Cadillac Escalade and furniture.
The Jamaican American artist had a No. 1 hit in 2007 with “Beautiful Girls” and collaborated with Justin Bieber on the song “Eenie Meenie.”
Robert Rosenblatt, an attorney for Kingston and his mother, said Friday that they planned to waive extradition, saying they looked forward to hearing the charges in a Florida court and were “confident of a successful resolution.”
An email sent to Rosenblatt seeking further comment Tuesday was not immediately returned.
Warrants in the case say that from October through March they stole about $500,000 in jewelry, more than $200,000 from Bank of America, $160,000 from an Escalade dealer, more than $100,000 from First Republic Bank and $86,000 from a company that makes customized beds. Details were not provided.
Kingston, whose legal name is Kishan Anderson, was already on two years’ probation for trafficking in stolen property.
Her mother pleaded guilty to bank fraud in 2006 for stealing more than $160,000 and served nearly 1.5 years in prison, according to federal court records.
