Nearly 30 years after the notorious murder of iconic rapper Tupac Shakur, the late musical legend may finally see some justice.
A grand jury indicted Duane “Keffe D” Davis on charge of murder with use of a deadly weapon on Friday in connection to Shakur’s murder, according to Las Vegas authorities. Davis was arrested Friday morning, as prosecutors say he ordered the 1996 killing of Shakur.
Following the arrest, authorities said during a Friday news conference that Davis had facilitated the killing as retaliation after an attack on his nephew, Orlando Anderson.
According to Las Vegas police homicide Lt. Jason Johansson, it was related to conflict between two gangs based in Compton, California. Shakur and Marion “Suge” Knight, former CEO of Death Row Records, had ties to Compton’s Mob Piru gang, while Davis was affiliated with the Southside Compton Crips, Johansson said.
Shakur was attending a Las Vegas boxing match to see Mike Tyson fight at the MGM Grand Hotel. Southside Compton Crips members, including David and his nephew, had also attended the event.
“As both groups were leaving the fight, members of Death Row Records spotted Orlando Anderson near an elevator bank inside the MGM and at that time they began to kick and punch him near that elevator bank,” Johansson said, citing hotel surveillance footage of the fight. Shakur and Knight were among the men who attacked Anderson.
“Little did anyone know that it is this incident right here that would ultimately lead to the retaliatory shooting and death of Tupac Shakur,” he said.
After both groups left the hotel, Shakur headed to a post-fight after party at a local nightclub. According to Johansson, Davis “began to devise a plan to obtain a firearm to retaliate” against Knight and Shakur after finding out about the attack on Anderson. After acquiring a gun from a “close associate,” David got into a white Cadillac alongside Terrence Brown, Deandre Smith, and Anderson.
“At some point in time, as they were in the white Cadillac, Mr. Davis took the gun that he had obtained and provided it to the passengers in the rear seat of the vehicle,” Johansson said. A copy of the indictment states Anderson and Smith were both in the back seat and does not specify which man pulled the trigger.
Shakur was shot and killed while leaving the boxing match on the Las Vegas Strip when he was only 25. Johansson said that police have long known the outline of events of that evening, though they lacked sufficient evidence to bring the case forward. Davis had confessed to the crime in 2009, but the information could not be used, according to a former police detective and investigator on the case.
The murder has since been the subject of various conspiracy theories and investigations spanning decades.
Davis has documented himself at the scene of the crime in the past, previously saying he was in the front seat of the white Cadillac that pulled up beside Shakur’s car when gunshots came from the backseat, killing the rapper. Davis has also admitted in interviews and his 2019 memoir, “Compton Street Legend,” that he provided the gun that was used in the drive-by shooting.
Shakur was shot four times and died six days later from his injuries.
Authorities said that Davis’ public comments were paramount in the revival of the investigation. Police also searched Davis’ wife’s home in July, seizing a copy of his memoir, where Davis describes himself as one of two living witnesses to the shooting, Knight is the other, though he is currently serving time in prison for manslaughter in an unrelated case.
Davis is due in court next week.
“Duane Davis was the shot caller for this group of individuals that committed this crime, and he orchestrated the plan that was carried out,” Johansson said.
Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department Sheriff Kevin McMahill pointed to the long road of justice Shakur’s family has treaded since his murder.
“The investigation started on the night of September 7th, 1996,” McMahill said. “It is far from over. It has taken countless hours, really decades, of work by the men and women of our homicide section to get to where we are today.”
In addition to the murder charge, the grand jury also voted to add a sentencing enhancement for gang activity, which could add up to 20 additional years should he be convicted.
Tupac’s step brother, Mopreme Shakur, said the news of Davis’ arrest is “bittersweet.”
“We have been through decades of pain. They have known about this guy, who been running his mouth, for years,” he said. “So why now? For us, this is not over. We want to know why, and if there were any accomplices.”
