Former gang boss Duane "Keffe D" Davis has been sentenced to 40 years in prison for orchestrating the murder of Tupac Shakur. A jury found Davis guilty in September of one count of murder with a deadly weapon for the rap superstar's death in a drive-by shooting in Las Vegas on 7 September 1996. He has stated that he will appeal the verdict.
Background
The 63-year-old gang boss' conviction marks the first in a cold case that has intrigued hip-hop fans for nearly 30 years. Prosecutors argued that although Davis did not fire the gun himself, he was the ringleader of the group that committed the murder. He admitted in his memoir that he had provided the gun used in the crime.
Key Evidence
The key evidence in the case was Davis' own words, in which he repeatedly and publicly acknowledged being inside the white Cadillac from where the deadly shots were fired. In exchange for being shielded from criminal prosecution, he had told authorities about his role in Shakur's death during a secret 2008 police interview related to the death of fellow rapper Notorious B.I.G., real name Christopher Wallace, who was killed in a shooting just months after Shakur.
