Ex- LA gang leader found guilty of Tupac’s murder

Duane "Keffe D" Davis, a 63-year-old former Los Angeles gang member and one-time leader of the South Side Compton Crips, was found guilty of murder in the 1996 killing of rapper Tupac Shakur. A Las Vegas jury deliberated for nearly three hours before finding Davis guilty of a single count of first-degree murder with a deadly weapon.

According to prosecutors, Davis ordered the killing after his nephew was beaten by members of Shakur's entourage at a Las Vegas casino on September 7, 1996. Davis acquired a firearm, got his group together, and went hunting for Shakur, prosecutor Binu Palal said during closing arguments. Shakur was shot by a gunman in a white Cadillac that pulled up alongside the BMW in which he was riding.

Davis faces a maximum sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole at his sentencing on October 13. He has stated his intention to appeal the verdict. The conviction brings a measure of resolution to a case that had gripped hip-hop fans for decades.

Brief written by urgent.news from Punch, NPR, SABC News, IOL, Gulf News — 5 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.