By Aaron Miller-
A self-professed gangster who police and prosecutors say masterminded the shooting death of Tupac Shakur in Las Vegas in 1996 is due to make his first appearance Wednesday before a Nevada judge.
Duane “Keffe D” Davis, 60, was arrested Friday during an early-morning walk near his home in suburban Henderson. A few hours later a grand jury indictment was unsealed in Clark County District Court charging him with murder.
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Police videos show SWAT officers detaining man, woman during home raid in Tupac Shakur cold case.
A grand jury indictment, unsealed shortly after Davis’s arrest, charges him with murder in connection with Shakur’s killing. Davis had previously been a suspect in the case, and his own admissions played a pivotal role in resurrecting the police investigation that led to the indictment.
The news came as police released a new never seen video showing the last moments of the rapper’s life. It shows Shakur and Death Row Records CEO Marion ‘Suge’ Knight leading an entourage of dozens to attack rival gang member Orlando ‘Baby Lane’ Anderson in the lobby of the MGM Grand just hours before the shooting.
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The clip then shows Shakur and others kicking Anderson as he lies on the ground. Security guards surround the melee but do not intervene. Shakur and Knight then leave the building before the police arrive.
Davis exposed himself after he discussed his involvement in Shakur’s murder in interviews leading up to the release of his 2019 tell-all memoir, titled “Compton Street Legend.”
In the memoir, he cryptically alluded to the consequences of living a “gangster lifestyle” and how one’s actions inevitably come back to haunt them.
Las Vegas police raided Davis’s home in mid-July, drawing fresh attention to the long-standing cold case. Prosecutors allege that Shakur’s murder was a result of rivalry and competition for dominance in the genre of gangsta rap, a feud between East Coast Bloods and West Coast Crips.
He has long been one of four suspects identified early in the investigation, and is not accused of being the gunman, but is described as the group’s ringleader by authorities.
Aiding and abetting is a crime in Nevada, making anyone who assists in the commission of a crime, also guilty of that crime.
Fatal Encounter
The fatal encounter unfolded in Las Vegas on September 7, 1996, following a brawl between Shakur and Davis’s nephew, Orlando “Baby Lane” Anderson, at the MGM Grand hotel-casino. Marion “Suge” Knight, the founder of Death Row Records, was also present that night, along with members of various gang sects.
Knight drove Shakur in a BMW, which was halted at a red light near the Las Vegas Strip when a white Cadillac pulled up alongside, leading to the fatal shooting.
Shakur was shot multiple times and succumbed to his injuries a week later. Knight, the intended target, was grazed by a bullet fragment.
Davis has publicly admitted that he was in the front passenger seat of the Cadillac and handed a .40-caliber handgun to his nephew in the back seat, from which the fatal shots were fired.
Under Nevada law, an individual can be convicted of murder for aiding another person in committing the crime.
Of the four people present in the Cadillac that night, Davis is the sole survivor.
Anderson died in a May 1998 shooting in Compton, while the other backseat passenger, DeAndre “Big Dre” or “Freaky” Smith, passed away in 2004.
The driver, Terrence “Bubble Up” Brown, was killed in a 2015 shooting in Compton.
Marion “Suge” Knight, a central figure in the events leading up to Shakur’s murder, is currently serving a 28-year prison sentence for his role in the fatal 2015 hit-and-run of a Compton businessman.
The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department has faced criticism for its initial handling of the Shakur murder case.
Sheriff Kevin McMahill, who oversees the department, has acknowledged these concerns and emphasized the ongoing commitment to resolving the case, which has haunted the music world for nearly three decades.
Davis had been a suspect in the case, and publicly admitted his role in the killing in interviews ahead of his 2019 tell-all memoir, “Compton Street Legend.”
“There’s one thing that’s for sure when living that gangster lifestyle,” he wrote. “You already know that the stuff you put out is going to come back; you never know how or when, but there’s never a doubt that it’s coming.”
Resurrection Of Case
Davis’ own comments resurrected the police investigation that led to the indictment, police and prosecutors said.
Las Vegas police raided Davis’ home in mid July, drawing renewed attention to one of hip-hop music’s most enduring mysteries.
They say Davis’s admission was corroborated with other evidence at the crime scene, leading to
Prosecutors allege Shakur’s killing was sparked by a rivalry and competition for dominance in a musical genre that, at the time, was dubbed “gangsta rap.”
The rivalry East Coast members of a Bloods gang sect associated with rap music mogul Marion “Suge” Knight against West Coast members of a Crips sect that Davis has said he led in Compton, California.
Tension escalated in Las Vegas the night of Sept. 7, 1996, when a brawl broke out between Shakur and Davis’ nephew, Orlando “Baby Lane” Anderson, at the MGM Grand hotel-casino following a heavyweight championship boxing match won by Mike Tyson.
Tyson was still in his prime when he destroyed Bruce Seldon in 1 round, and Tupac was a strong fan of Iron Mike.
Knight and Shakur went to the fight, as did members of the South Side Crips,” prosecutor Marc DiGiacomo said last week in court. “And (Knight) brought his entourage, which involved Mob Piru gang members.”
After the casino brawl, Knight drove a BMW with Shakur in the front passenger seat.
The car was stopped at a red light near the Las Vegas Strip when a white Cadillac pulled up on the passenger side and gunfire erupted.
Shakur died a week later at age 25, whilst Knight was grazed by a bullet fragment. Ever since his murder, Tupac’s killer had evaded police, as rumours swirled in some circles that the rap star may have ingeniously faked his death.
Snaps of individuals with a strong resemblance to Tupac spotted in public made made headlines as recently as this year.
Capital Extra have a compiled list of some of the numerous times Tupac was claimed to have been spotted in public, when in fact thy were seeing someone who probably bore a striking resemblance to the late rapper.
The former rap star’s certain death is further affirmed in this murder charge.
Davis has said he was in the front passenger seat of the Cadillac and handed a .40-caliber handgun to his nephew in the back seat, from which he said the shots were fired.
In Nevada, a person can be convicted of murder for helping another person commit the crime.
Among the four people in the Cadillac that night, Davis is the only one still alive. Anderson died in a May 1998 shooting in Compton. Anderson denied involvement in Shakur’s death when he was still alive. The other backseat passenger, DeAndre “Big Dre” or “Freaky” Smith, died in 2004.
The driver, Terrence “Bubble Up” Brown, died in a 2015 shooting in Compton.
Knight, now 58, is now serving a 28-year prison sentence for running over and killing a Compton businessman outside a burger stand in January 2015.
Sheriff Kevin McMahill, who oversees the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, has acknowledged criticism that his agency was slow to investigate Shakur’s killing.
Until Thursday, the murder of Shakur had been one of the most infamous unsolved killings in modern American history. He was shot while sitting in the passenger seat of a BMW driven by rap mogul Suge Knight near the Vegas Strip.
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