Las Vegas court convicts Duane Davis of Tupac Shakur’s murder

By Damilola Akinwale –

Former Los Angeles gang leader Duane Davis, also known as Keffe D, has been convicted of the 1996 murder of legendary rapper Tupac Shakur by a Las Vegas court.

Thirty years after Shakur’s death, a jury found 63-year-old Davis guilty of first-degree murder on Monday after weeks of testimony that focused largely on his previous interviews and statements about the killing.

Davis was accused of orchestrating the attack as retaliation for a casino-lobby brawl earlier on September 7, 1996, involving Shakur, his entourage and Davis’ nephew, Orlando “Baby Lane” Anderson. Prosecutors alleged that the shooting was planned and amounted to premeditated murder.

Much of the prosecution’s case centred on Davis’ own accounts of the shooting. In a 2008 police interview played to jurors, Davis said he provided the gun while Anderson opened fire. He also acknowledged in previous interviews and his 2019 memoir, Compton Street Legend, that he was in the Cadillac allegedly used in the attack.

Shakur was in Las Vegas to attend a heavyweight boxing bout between Mike Tyson and Bruce Seldon at the MGM Grand. He was riding in a BMW driven by Death Row Records co-founder Marion “Suge” Knight when a white Cadillac pulled alongside them at a red light near the Las Vegas Strip and gunfire erupted. Shakur was shot multiple times and died six days later.

Chief Deputy District Attorney Binu Palal told jurors that Davis obtained a gun and went looking for Shakur and Knight, arguing that his actions demonstrated intent and planning. Prosecutors also played clips from Davis’ YouTube interviews in which he discussed the shooting and promoted his memoir.

Davis’ defence team disputed his previous statements, arguing that they were exaggerated claims intended to generate publicity and make money. His lawyer, Michael Sanft, also pointed to what he described as a lack of physical evidence directly linking Davis to the shooting.

Las Vegas police began investigating the murder on September 9, 1996, but the case stalled for years, partly because witnesses were unwilling to cooperate. Davis was eventually indicted in 2023 after police searched a Henderson property connected through public records to his wife. Shakur, known professionally as 2Pac, was 25 when he was killed and went on to become one of the most influential figures in hip-hop history.