The murder trial of former gang leader Duane “Keffe D” Davis is set to begin with opening statements on Monday. He stands accused of orchestrating the drive-by shooting that resulted in the death of rap legend Tupac Shakur nearly 30 years ago. Prosecutors allege that Davis planned the attack and supplied the firearm after a confrontation between Shakur and Davis’ nephew at the MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas.
Although Davis is not accused of firing the shot that killed Shakur, Nevada law allows for a murder conviction if someone aids in committing the crime. Davis faces charges for murder with a deadly weapon aimed at promoting or assisting a criminal gang.
The prosecution intends to rely on a book co-written by Davis in 2019, titled “Compton Street Legend: Notorious Keffe D’s Street-Level Accounts of Tupac and Biggie Murders, Death Row Origins, Suge Knight, Puffy Combs, and Crooked Cops.” In the memoir, Davis allegedly describes his involvement in Shakur’s murder. He has publicly admitted being in the car from which the shots were fired at Shakur and music producer Marion “Suge” Knight at a Las Vegas stoplight.
In both the book and interviews, Davis recounts that gunfire ensued after Shakur allegedly reached for a weapon. Davis reflects, “Tupac made an erratic move and began to reach down beneath his seat.” He claims someone from his car then began firing toward Shakur.
Authorities report that no weapon was found in Shakur and Knight’s vehicle. Davis attributes the motive behind the killing to an earlier altercation between Shakur and his nephew, Orlando Anderson. Anderson, who some have suspected as the shooter, died in 1998. Davis writes that Shakur and his entourage overstepped boundaries by attacking Anderson that night, stating, “We couldn’t let no record company studio gangsters do us like that.”
Davis also claims to know more about the circumstances surrounding both Tupac and Biggie’s deaths. Key witnesses in the case may include Knight, who is serving time for voluntary manslaughter in California, and Nevada Governor Joe Lombardo, who served as an officer with the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police at the time of the murder. Former Death Row Records security head Reggie Wright Jr. has been subpoenaed, while Sean “Diddy” Combs, who Davis accused of wanting Shakur dead, will not testify. Combs is currently serving a sentence for prostitution-related offenses.