Who shot Tupac Shakur? 5 of the biggest bombshells from the grand jury transcripts
Gina BartonIn September 2023, Duane Keith “Keffe D” Davis was indicted for the murder of Tupac Shakur, who was killed in a drive-by shooting in Las Vegas in 1996.
Prosecutors in Clark County, Nevada have described Davis as the man who called the shots for the South Side Crips street gang in Compton, California. They allege that although Davis didn’t pull the trigger, he is responsible because one of his underlings did so at his command.
Davis has pleaded not guilty and is awaiting trial. As part of his defense, his lawyer filed records detailing interviews he did with law enforcement officers in 2008 and 2009. A defense motion asserts that the charges against Davis should be thrown out because he was granted immunity in exchange for telling investigators what he knew about Shakur’s murder.
More than 500 pages of transcripts from the grand jury hearing that resulted in the charges are now public. During the testimony, several allegations about the shooting and the events leading up to it were made under oath for the first time. Here are some of them:
Gangs played a role in the rivalry between Death Row Records and Bad Boy Records
The South Side Crips street gang routinely hung out with several high-profile artists signed to the Bad Boy label, including The Notorious B.I.G. (who also performed under the name Biggie Smals), Lil’ Cease of the group Junior M.A.F.I.A. and the R&B girl group Total, according to testimony from Crips member Denvonta Lee. The only well-known Bad Boy artist they didn’t hang out with was Lil’ Kim, Lee testified. A faction of the Bloods street gang, Mob Piru, was allegedly affiliated with Death Row.
The theft of a Death Row medallion preceded Shakur's death
For Christmas 1995, Marion "Suge" Knight gave gold and diamond Death Row medallions to some of his closest friends, including members of Mob Piru, according to grand jury testimony. A Crips gang member allegedly stole one of the medallions from around a rival's neck at a California mall in the days before Shakur was murdered in Las Vegas.
Sean "Diddy" Combs allegedly put out a hit on Shakur and Knight
After Knight insulted Combs at the 1995 Source Awards, Combs and Knight were involved in a heated exchange at a party, where Combs allegedly asked Knight, “Why you dissing me in front of everyone like that?” Davis told police Combs offered a $1 million bounty for the heads of Shakur and Knight. Combs denies this, and according to police, he has never been a suspect in Shakur's murder.
What happened the night Tupac Shakur was shot?
On the night Shakur was fatally shot, he was on his way to perform at Club 662, managed by Knight. The club got its name because the numbers 662 spelled out “Mob” (Members of Bloods) on a 1990s-era telephone keypad. As Shakur headed there in a black BMW, a group of women yelled, “Tupac! Tupac! We love you, Tupac!” The rapper leaned out the front passenger window to talk to them, and Davis wrote in his book that his crew saw an opportunity.
Who killed Tupac Shakur?
Davis has named Orlando “Baby Lane” Anderson as the man who shot Shakur. But Lee testified that his roommate, Deandre “Big Dre” Smith later admitted he pulled the trigger because Anderson couldn’t get a clear shot. Both Smith and Anderson have since died.
Gina Barton is an investigative reporter at USA TODAY. She can be reached at (262) 757-8640 or [email protected]. Follow her on X @writerbarton or on Bluesky @writerbarton.bsky.social.