The trial of Duane "Keffe D" Davis, accused in the 1996 murder of legendary rapper Tupac Shakur, begins Monday in Las Vegas. Prosecutors allege Davis provided the gun used in the shooting. The proceedings are expected to last about a month, but it is unlikely to be determined who actually pulled the trigger, reports infohub.kz.
Shakur was fatally wounded on September 7, 1996, in Las Vegas. He was in a BMW with music producer Marion "Suge" Knight, heading to Club 662. At a traffic light, a white Cadillac pulled up alongside, and four shots were fired. The rapper died on September 13; Knight survived.
The investigation stalled for years until Davis, a former leader of the South Side Compton Crips, published a memoir in 2019 that prompted authorities to reopen the case. In the book, Davis claims he obtained the gun and placed it on the back seat of the white Cadillac, but does not specify who fired it.
The crime was rooted in a feud between the South Side Compton Crips and the Mob Piru Bloods, the latter associated with Knight's Death Row Records label. On the day of the murder, a fight broke out, after which Shakur and his associates beat Orlando Anderson, Davis's nephew. Prosecutors believe revenge was the motive: either Anderson or Deandre Smith shot the rapper. Anderson was long considered the shooter, but witness Dervonta Lee pointed to Smith.
Davis, 63, is the only surviving suspect. His nephew Anderson died in 1998, Smith in 2004, and Terrence Brown in 2015. Davis was arrested in 2023 and charged with murder with a firearm. The case relies on witness testimony, surveillance footage, hard drive contents, and his own book, where he admits to making the decision and handing the gun to his nephew. However, Davis now claims he did not write the book and made statements for fame and money.
The trial will begin with jury selection and opening statements. The prosecution plans to call 35 to 45 witnesses, including former Las Vegas mayor Oscar Goodman, members of Shakur's family, Dervonta Lee, and Leonard Jefferson, who photographed the rapper before his death. It is unclear whether "Suge" Knight, currently incarcerated in California, will be called. Davis's attorney believes his testimony would be useful. The defense will call fewer witnesses, including an expert on false confessions.
In the book, Davis also claims Sean "Diddy" Combs offered him money to kill Shakur and Knight, but Combs denies it. Combs is currently serving time in New Jersey and is not on the witness list.