The family of Tupac Shakur have said they are “elated and relieved” after Duane ‘Keffe D’ Davis was found guilty of orchestrating the late rapper’s murder.
Davis was convicted of one count of murder with a deadly weapon in a drive-by attack in Las Vegas on September 7, 1996, last week.
In response to the verdict, Shakur’s family released a statement thanking the jury for “thoughtfully fulfilling their duty and carefully listening to all the evidence.”
The statement shared by Shakur’s sister Sekyiwa “Set” Shakur, read: “Above all, we honour Afeni Shakur — a mother whose strength and unshakable belief in her son’s truth carried this fight long before any of us knew where it would lead.
“The family of Tupac Amaru Shakur is elated and relieved by today’s verdict. We would like to thank the jury for thoughtfully fulfilling their duty and carefully listening to all the evidence.”
The statement continued, “Our deepest appreciation goes out to our family, friends, loved ones and all of Tupac’s fans, who have always provided their love and support. We also want to extend our deepest gratitude to the marshals and advocates who supported and protected us throughout this process. Your steady presence and care did not go unnoticed, and we are forever grateful.”
The family’s message added that “this is not the end of the story” and said the rapper’s “legacy and impact on the world lives on and we will continue to do everything we can to keep his spirit alive.”
Davis has since insisted he is “innocent” in his first interview since the ruling. He said that his legal team has already filed an appeal and said he is confident about his freedom.
“Shit, I ain’t worried. I’m getting out on an appeal,” he said from the Clark County Detention Center in Nevada. “We already filed it before the trial even started. They violated my civil rights!”
Davis went on to accuse witnesses of being dishonest about his character throughout the trial, and claimed that he didn’t write the 2019 autobiography Compton Street Legend which was used as evidence in court.
He added: “I never wrote that book. The author told me to tell them 10 stories about what happened in your life and get them some pictures. I never read that book or went over that book or nothing. They didn’t even spell my name right on the cover.”
Asked if he had any message for Shakur’s family, Davis said: “I ain’t got nothing to say to them. I didn’t like the way they was looking at me – like they was ready to beat me up. And I didn’t like the way the prosecutors kept bringing them in the back room where the jury was. That felt biased to me.”
Shakur’s family and Compton Street Legend co-author Yusuf Jah are yet to respond to Davis’ comments publicly.
Prosecutors argued during the trial that although Davis, a former leader of the South Side Compton Crips street gang, did not fire the gun that killed Shakur, he ordered the shooting and supplied the gun that his nephew Orlando Anderson used to open fire.
Prosecutors argued that the attack was retaliation for Shakur and members of his entourage beating Anderson at the MGM Grand hours earlier.
Anderson, who died two years later in an unrelated shootout, was a member of a rival gang in Compton, California.
Prosecutors played eight hours of recordings during the trial, taken from four separate events in different years, during which Davis shared in his own words on what happened, repeatedly and publicly acknowledging being inside the white Cadillac from where the deadly shots were fired.
Davis previously told authorities about his role in Shakur’s death during a secret 2008 police interview related to the death of fellow rapper The Notorious B.I.G.. He elaborated further on his role in his 2019 memoir, Compton Street Legend.
Davis’ defence attorney Michael Sanft maintained that Davis fabricated the accounts for personal advantage, entertainment and money. He also argued that investigators did not charge his client after the 2008 interview because they did not consider his story credible or find sufficient evidence to corroborate it.
The court heard during one recording that Davis identified himself as the front passenger in the rented white Cadillac that pulled alongside the BMW carrying Shakur and Suge Knight on September 7, 1996.
He said Terrence ‘Bubble Up’ Brown was driving, while his nephew Orlando ‘Baby Lane’ Anderson and DeAndre ‘Dre’ Smith were sitting in the back. Davis claimed that he passed a loaded gun to the back seat because he did not have a clear shot from his side of the vehicle.
According to the recording, Smith initially hesitated before Anderson took the weapon. “He rolled down the window, popped ’em,” David told investigators.
Davis claimed he would have opened fire himself had Knight’s BMW been positioned on his side of the Cadillac. He also said he saw Shakur attempting to move into the back seat as the shots were fired.
Shakur was gunned down after a car drove alongside him and opened fire as he travelled from a Mike Tyson boxing match. He died from his injuries six days later.
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