Keffe D Convicted of First-Degree Murder in Tupac Killing

A Las Vegas jury found Duane 'Keffe D' Davis guilty of first-degree murder for orchestrating Tupac Shakur's 1996 drive-by killing, closing a 30-year case.

A Las Vegas jury on Monday convicted Duane "Keffe D" Davis, 63, of first-degree murder with use of a deadly weapon in the 1996 drive-by killing of Tupac Shakur, closing one of music history's most notorious cold cases. After a nearly two-week trial and roughly three hours of deliberation, jurors unanimously agreed that Davis orchestrated the Sept. 7, 1996 shooting near the Las Vegas Strip. Davis, dressed in black, stood silently as the verdict was read and later told the court he intends to appeal. Judge Carli Kierny ordered him held without bail until his Oct. 13 sentencing, where he faces up to life in prison.

The verdict is striking because Davis was never accused of pulling the trigger. Prosecutors argued he was a "shotcaller" for the South Side Compton Crips who sought revenge after Shakur and others beat his nephew, Orlando "Baby Lane" Anderson, inside the MGM Grand hours before the shooting. Under Nevada law, someone who helps another commit murder can be convicted of the crime itself. Davis is the only person ever criminally charged in the killing, and the only living person who rode in the Cadillac with the shooter, since the other three men in the car have since died.

The case was built largely on Davis's own accounts. In a recorded 2008 proffer interview with investigators, initially given in an unrelated federal probe, Davis said he rode in the front passenger seat of the white Cadillac and passed a .40-caliber Glock to the back seat, where Anderson opened fire on Shakur and Suge Knight. His 2019 memoir "Compton Street Legend," which prosecutors called the final piece of evidence, prompted the renewed investigation.

Defense attorney Michael Sanft argued Davis fabricated or embellished his accounts for money and notoriety, pointing to retellings that conflicted with his book and earlier statements. He noted detectives never found receipts, phone logs, or photos proving Davis was in Las Vegas that night or supplied the gun, and a retired homicide detective testified he could not verify details of Davis's 2009 interview. Rolling Stone reports Sanft highlighted a Sebring passenger who contradicted Davis's book account of her car being struck by gunfire. "They conflict with the book, and they conflict with the past," Sanft told jurors, arguing the only agreed fact was that Shakur was shot and killed on Sept. 7, 1996.

Shakur, 25, was gunned down while riding in a BMW driven by Knight after attending the Mike Tyson–Bruce Seldon fight at the MGM Grand. He died six days later, and the killing became a defining moment of the East Coast–West Coast rap feud at gangsta rap's height. Former Compton officer Robert Ladd testified the shooting triggered a 10-day gang war in Compton with three killings and 10 attempted murders. Shakur's legacy has only grown: a Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction in 2017, a Hollywood Walk of Fame star in 2023, and continued influence on new generations of listeners.

Davis remains in custody ahead of his October 13 sentencing, where he faces life in prison, and has told the court he plans to appeal. Shakur's sister, Sekyiwa "Set" Shakur, wept in the courtroom as the verdict was read. Prosecutors dismissed the gang enhancement portion of the charge before deliberations due to witness logistics.