Duane “Keffe D” Davis has been found guilty of first-degree murder in the 1996 killing of rapper Tupac Shakur, bringing a major development in a case that remained unsolved for decades.
A Las Vegas jury returned the guilty verdict on Monday after deliberating for only a few hours.
Davis, 63, was convicted of first-degree murder with the use of a deadly weapon.
He told Judge Carli Kierny after the verdict that he intends to appeal.
Prosecutors accused Davis of ordering shooting
Davis, a former leader of the South Side Compton Crips, was accused of ordering Shakur’s killing after his nephew was assaulted by members of the rapper’s entourage at a Las Vegas casino on 7 September 1996.
Prosecutors argued that Davis obtained a firearm, gathered his group and went looking for Shakur.
About two hours after the casino confrontation, a white Cadillac pulled alongside the BMW carrying Shakur at a red traffic light.
Prosecutors said Davis handed a gun to someone sitting in the back seat of the Cadillac and ordered that person to shoot.
Shakur was wounded in the attack and died six days later at the age of 25.
Death Row Records co-founder Marion “Suge” Knight, who was driving the BMW, was also wounded.
Davis statements became key evidence
The murder investigation struggled for years because of a lack of evidence.
The case later gained momentum after Davis published his memoir, Compton Street Legend, in 2019.
Prosecutors relied on statements Davis had made over the years in interviews with law enforcement, the media and in his book about his alleged involvement.
During closing arguments, prosecutor Binu Palal played clips from Davis’s previous statements.
Davis had pleaded not guilty.
His defence attorney, Michael Sanft, argued that the statements were fictional or exaggerated and partly intended to promote Davis’s book.
Sentencing set for October
Davis is the only person who was in the Cadillac on the night of the shooting who is still alive.
He is also the only person to have been charged in connection with Shakur’s killing.
Davis faces the possibility of life imprisonment without parole.
His sentencing has been scheduled for 13 October.