{"id":222761,"date":"2026-09-01T19:28:59","date_gmt":"2026-09-01T19:28:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/ex-gang-leader-found-guilty-of-murder-in-tupac-shakurs-1996-drive-by-killing-nbc-news\/"},"modified":"2026-09-01T19:28:59","modified_gmt":"2026-09-01T19:28:59","slug":"ex-gang-leader-found-guilty-of-murder-in-tupac-shakurs-1996-drive-by-killing-nbc-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/ex-gang-leader-found-guilty-of-murder-in-tupac-shakurs-1996-drive-by-killing-nbc-news\/","title":{"rendered":"Ex-gang leader found guilty of murder in Tupac Shakur\u2019s 1996 drive-by killing – NBC News"},"content":{"rendered":"

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The man accused of orchestrating rapper Tupac Shakur\u2019s killing was convicted Monday of first-degree murder with use of a deadly weapon in the 1996 Las Vegas slaying.
Following a nearly two-week trial, jurors unanimously found Duane \u201cKeffe D\u201d Davis, 63, guilty of the murder that for nearly 30 years has gripped rap fans, true-crime experts and conspiracy theorists alike.
Clark County prosecutors had argued that Davis was a \u201cshotcaller\u201d for the South Side Compton Crips in Los Angeles and that he sought revenge on Shakur after he attacked Davis\u2019 nephew.
Davis was not accused of pulling the trigger, but under Nevada law, someone who helps another person commit murder can be convicted of the crime. Davis is the only person alive who rode in the same car as the shooter 30 years ago, prosecutors said.
Davis, dressed in all black, stood silently next to his counsel as the verdict was read. He took a seat, hands clasped on the table in front of him, as the jurors were polled one by one, each affirming the guilty verdict.
Sekyiwa \u201cSet\u201d Shakur, Tupac\u2019s sister, cried and reached back to a person behind her. Davis\u2019 son covered his face with one hand, The Associated Press reported.
District Judge Carli Kierny ordered Davis, who faces a life sentence, to remain in jail until his Oct. 13 sentencing. Davis indicated he intends to file an appeal.
Shakur, who was 25 when he died, was revered as one of the most influential rappers of all time and continues to bring in new generations of listeners<\/a>.
The prosecution said Monday that the state would dismiss the gang enhancement part of the charge because of witness logistics.
Chief Deputy District Attorney Binu Palal said in his closing statement that Davis \u201cwent hunting\u201d for Shakur and Death Row Records co-founder Marion \u201cSuge\u201d Knight after they were spotted at the MGM Grand Hotel beating up Orlando \u201cBaby Lane\u201d Anderson, also known as the \u201cprince\u201d of Compton in California because of his relationship to Davis.
Jurors watched grainy VHS security video and heard multiple former law enforcement officers testify about the fight that broke out a few hours before Shakur and Knight were wounded in a drive-by shooting.
Knight survived his injuries, but Shakur died six days later.
In 2008, Davis entered into an agreement with federal investigators who were looking into the death of Marion Wallace, the rapper known as Notorious B.I.G.
Davis believed the deal, called a proffer, gave him immunity, but he was not shielded from future prosecution if he confessed to being involved in Shakur\u2019s murder.
Because of the proffer, Davis described details of Shakur\u2019s killing that only a witness could provide, Bilal said. They included the positions of people inside the car in the drive-by shooting and previous gang fights that culminated in Shakur\u2019s death.
Davis\u2019 2019 memoir, \u201cCompton Street Legend,\u201d was the final piece of evidence needed to convict him, Bilal said. In the book, Davis writes that he played a role in Shakur\u2019s murder, and its publication prompted a renewed investigation into Shakur\u2019s killing.
\u201cFor nearly 18 years, Duane Davis has told the police, television, books, YouTube interviewers, anybody that will listen,\u201d Bilal said in his closing statement. \u201cHe has told you he is responsible for the murder of Tupac Shakur. Tell him you hear him. Find him guilty.\u201d
Defense attorney Michael Sanft argued that Davis fabricated or embellished his accounts of the killing for money and notoriety and that investigators failed to independently corroborate his claims.
During his closing, Sanft repeatedly pointed to a lack of physical evidence that could place his client at the crime scene. Detectives never found records \u2014 including receipts, phone logs or photos \u2014 that proved Davis was in Las Vegas at the same time as Shakur or that he provided the gun used to kill him.
Retired Las Vegas homicide detective Dan Long, the defense\u2019s final witness, testified that he tried unsuccessfully to verify several details Davis provided during a 2009 police interview, Sanft argued.
\u201cWhen you think about Mr. Davis\u2019 statements, they all conflict,\u201d Sanft said in his closing statement. \u201cThey conflict with the book, and they conflict with the past. And the only thing that we have is that we can agree on is that Tupac Shakur was shot and killed on Sept. 7, 1996, in Las Vegas, Nevada.\u201d
Shakur\u2019s killing triggered a decadeslong investigation that took Las Vegas investigators from the Strip to Compton, near Los Angeles, where rival gangs were embroiled in a violent war that erupted immediately after Shakur was shot.
Uncooperative witnesses and conflicting statements made it difficult<\/a> for police to draw a straight line from Las Vegas to Compton, where everyone associated with the shooting lived, officials testified.
Las Vegas detectives traveled to Southern California a dozen times and were continually stymied by unreliable informants and a culture of silence, former law enforcement officers testified.
\u201cI think it made the case more difficult, and I think the 30 years made the case more difficult, as well,\u201d Sanft told reporters last week.
Alicia Victoria Lozano is a California-based reporter for NBC News focusing on climate change, wildfires and the changing politics of drug laws.
© 2026 NBCUniversal Media, LLC<\/p>\n

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news AlertsThere are no new alerts at this timeThe man accused of orchestrating rapper Tupac Shakur\u2019s killing was convicted Monday of first-degree murder with use of a deadly weapon in the 1996 Las Vegas slaying.Following a nearly two-week trial, jurors unanimously found Duane \u201cKeffe D\u201d Davis, 63, guilty of the murder that for nearly 30 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":222762,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-222761","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-us","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/222761","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=222761"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/222761\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/222762"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=222761"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=222761"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=222761"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}