A Las Vegas jury has found Duane “Keffe D” Davis, a former Los Angeles-area gang leader, guilty of orchestrating the 1996 murder of legendary rapper Tupac Shakur.

Tupac was shot in a drive-by attack on September 7, 1996, while in Las Vegas to attend a heavyweight boxing bout involving Mike Tyson. He succumbed to his injuries six days later after being placed on life support.

Davis, 63, a former leader of the South Side Compton Crips, was arrested in September 2024, nearly three decades after the rapper’s death. His trial began in August at a Las Vegas court, following jury selection.

At the beginning of the trial, Davis pleaded not guilty to a murder charge involving the use of a deadly weapon in connection with criminal gang activity.

Prosecutor Binu Palal told the court that Davis harboured intense anger toward Tupac following an earlier attack involving his nephew, Orlando “Baby Lane” Anderson. According to the prosecution, Davis obtained a firearm and handed it to Anderson, who allegedly used it in the drive-by shooting targeting Tupac’s vehicle.

Palal argued that the case remained unsolved for years because of the culture of silence within gangs, saying, “silence means survival.” However, he maintained that Davis eventually broke that silence through interviews and a book in which he allegedly discussed his involvement.

After approximately three hours of deliberation on Monday, the 12-member jury returned a guilty verdict.

Davis was convicted of first-degree murder with the use of a deadly weapon, with the intent to promote, further or assist a criminal gang.

“Count one, murder with use of a deadly weapon, guilty of first-degree murder with use of a deadly weapon,” the jury foreperson announced in court.

Davis, dressed in a black suit, stood beside his lawyer as the verdict was read. He later sat down with his fingers clasped together on the table.

The 63-year-old faces a possible maximum sentence of life imprisonment.