HUNTER: Tupac Shakur murder trial attempts to uncoil death plot

Opening arguments in the murder trial of former gang leader Duane "Keffe D" Davis painted him as the mastermind behind the drive-by shooting that killed iconic rapper Tupac Shakur. Prosecutors alleged that Davis, 63, orchestrated the killing in retaliation for the beating of his nephew, Orlando Anderson. Davis has denied the allegations and pleaded not guilty.

The case stems from the night of September 7, 1996, when Shakur was shot dead outside a Las Vegas hotel after attending a Mike Tyson boxing match. Prosecutors claim that Davis, a former leader of the South Side Compton Crips street gang, ordered the attack after Anderson was involved in a fight with Shakur hours earlier. They argue that Davis believed the attack on his nephew could not "go unanswered".

The prosecution's first witness was Garry Dale, a Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department officer who rode in an ambulance with Shakur after he was shot. The officer testified that Shakur refused to provide any information about the incident and who was responsible. Davis' defense team argues that the narrative is "fiction" and that the case is a product of a flawed, decades-long investigation.

They point to missing police reports, disputed evidence, and biased detective work, claiming that prosecutors relied on unreliable witnesses with criminal records and financial motivations. The defense also alleges that witnesses changed their stories over time and were influenced by various factors. The trial, which began on Monday after a week of jury selection, is expected to continue over the next few weeks with additional witnesses, experts, and possibly even celebrity testimony.