Photo: JOHN LOCHER / AFP / Getty Images
A jury in Las Vegas found Duane "Keffe D" Davis guilty of orchestrating the 1996 murder of rap icon Tupac Shakur on Monday.
This marks the first conviction in a case that has captivated the hip-hop community for nearly three decades. Davis, 63, was convicted of first-degree murder with a deadly weapon and faces a potential life sentence.
The jury deliberated for less than three hours following a weekslong trial. During the trial, prosecutors argued that Davis acquired a gun and "went hunting" for Shakur and Death Row Records co-founder Marion "Suge" Knight after they assaulted Davis' nephew earlier that night. Chief Deputy District Attorney Binu Palal emphasized that while Davis' accounts of the murder had evolved over the years, he consistently placed himself inside the white Cadillac from which the shots were fired.
Prosecutors presented evidence that Davis, although not the shooter, was responsible for the murder by providing the gun and ordering the attack. Davis' defense attorney, Michael Sanft, argued there was no physical evidence linking Davis to the crime and suggested his client's public statements were exaggerated for financial gain.
The trial brought closure to a case that had remained unsolved since Shakur was fatally shot on September 7, 1996, while stopped at a red light in Las Vegas. Shakur died six days later from his injuries, while Knight survived.
The conviction comes after Davis began making public statements about his involvement, claiming he was in the Cadillac and handed the gun to others in the backseat. Davis is the only living suspect among the four men prosecutors say were in the car.
Davis is expected to be sentenced on October 13 in Las Vegas.