Duane “Keefe D” Davis has been found guilty of involvement in the murder of Tupac Shakur, nearly three decades after the rapper’s untimely death in 1996.
On August 31, Clark County District Judge Carli Kierny announced the jury’s decision following a 90-minute deliberation. The court clerk formally declared Keefe D guilty of first-degree murder with a deadly weapon, intending to promote, further, or assist a criminal gang in Tupac Shakur’s killing.
As reported by CNN, following the verdict’s announcement, Keefe D briefly raised his fist and looked at those present while leaving the courtroom. Family members of 2Pac were visibly emotional, with his sister, Sekyiwa “Set” Shakur, quietly weeping as the verdict was read.
Jury Convicts Duane “Keefe D” Davis
Keefe D faces a potential life sentence when he returns to court for sentencing on October 13. His arrest occurred on September 29, 2023, after a raid on his home two months earlier. He was charged with murder using a deadly weapon to support a criminal street gang.
Authorities believe Keefe D procured the weapon used in Tupac’s murder and was present at the Las Vegas shooting. The other three men allegedly involved have died, including Keefe D’s nephew Orlando Anderson, the suspected shooter, who was killed in 1998. The shooting is thought to have been retaliatory after Anderson was attacked by Tupac and members of Death Row Records following a Mike Tyson fight on September 7, 1996.
Throughout the trial, which spanned nearly three years, Keefe remained in custody despite partial bail payment by Wack 100 in 2024. Judge Kierny refused his release following the prosecution’s argument that the bail motive was linked to a potential series by Wack.
The trial proceedings began on August 17, tackling one of hip-hop’s most infamous unsolved murder cases. Over three weeks, jurors received testimony from numerous witnesses, including former Death Row security head Reggie Wright Jr., eyewitness Ingrid Stokes, and ex-Las Vegas police officer Garry Dale.
Keefe D’s autobiography “Compton Street Legend,” published in 2019, played a significant role in the trial. The book discusses events surrounding the 1996 shooting and claims Tupac reached for a weapon before shots were fired from Keefe’s car. Police stated no weapon was found in Tupac and Suge Knight’s vehicle.
Keefe D’s defense challenged the inclusion of his book as evidence in the trial, arguing its fictionalized nature for profit and questioning authorship since it was co-written. He claimed unfamiliarity with the book’s content, alleging that his co-author took creative liberties.
Judge Kierny ruled that excerpts from the book were admissible, determining that Keefe adopted its contents as his own through repeatedly describing it as the “real truth.”
A jury in Las Vegas, Nevada, today convicted a 63-year-old former gang leader of murder for his role in the fatal shooting of rapper Tupac Shakur 30 years ago.
Jurors deliberated about 90 minutes before finding Duane “Keffe D” Davis guilty of a single count of murder. pic.twitter.com/OBTEA7DziJ
— Meghann Cuniff (@meghanncuniff) September 1, 2026
