Ex-LA Gang Leader Found Guilty of Tupac Shakur’s Murder.

Former Los Angeles gang leader Duane “Keffe D” Davis has been found guilty of the 1996 murder of legendary American rapper Tupac Shakur.

A Las Vegas jury reached the verdict on Monday, August 31, after deliberating for only a few hours. Davis, 63, was convicted of first-degree murder with the use of a deadly weapon.

The jury’s foreperson announced the verdict in court, stating that Davis was guilty of the murder charge.

Davis, who could face life imprisonment without the possibility of parole, told Judge Carli Kierny after the verdict that he intends to appeal.

Prosecutors accused Davis, a former leader of the South Side Compton Crips, of organising the attack after his nephew was involved in a confrontation with members of Shakur’s entourage at a Las Vegas casino.

During closing arguments, prosecutor Binu Palal told the jury that Davis responded to the confrontation by obtaining a firearm, gathering members of his group and going after Shakur.

Shakur, who was in Las Vegas to watch a heavyweight boxing match involving Mike Tyson, was shot on September 7, 1996. The attack happened when a white Cadillac pulled alongside the BMW in which Shakur was travelling with Death Row Records co-founder Marion “Suge” Knight.

According to prosecutors, Davis handed the gun to another person inside the Cadillac and directed the individual to shoot Shakur.

The rapper was struck by gunfire and died six days later at the age of 25. Knight was also wounded in the attack.

Davis is the only surviving person who was inside the Cadillac at the time of the shooting.

The murder remained one of the most high-profile unsolved cases in the United States for nearly three decades. Davis was eventually charged after renewed attention was drawn to his alleged involvement through his 2019 memoir, Compton Street Legend, as well as statements he had previously made in interviews.

Davis had repeatedly spoken about his alleged involvement in Shakur’s killing, including during interviews with law enforcement and the media. However, he later denied the murder charge and pleaded not guilty.

Prosecutors presented some of Davis’s previous statements to the jury as alleged confessions.

His defence attorney, Michael Sanft, argued that Davis’s statements were fabricated, partly to promote his book. Sanft maintained that there was no evidence directly linking his client to the murder apart from Davis’s own statements.

Shakur, popularly known as 2Pac, was one of the most influential figures in hip-hop and a central figure in the famous rivalry between the US East Coast and West Coast rap scenes during the 1990s.

He was known for major hits including “California Love” and “All Eyez on Me.” Born in New York and raised partly in Harlem and Baltimore, Shakur later became a major figure in California’s hip-hop scene after signing with Los Angeles-based Death Row Records.

Davis is currently the only person to have been charged in connection with Shakur’s murder.

Sentencing has been scheduled for October 13, 2026.