A self-proclaimed gangster, allegedly involved in the murder of Tupac Shakur in Las Vegas in 1996, made his first appearance in court on a murder charge. Duane "Keffe D" Davis, 60, appeared in court wearing a jail uniform and requested a delay in his arraignment to secure legal counsel.
The arraignment was rescheduled for October 19.
Mopreme Shakur, Tupac Shakur’s stepbrother, expressed his frustration over the delayed justice for his brother, emphasizing that the legal process has been exceedingly slow, particularly when it concerns young Black men.
Davis was arrested near his suburban Henderson home last week. A grand jury indictment, unsealed shortly after his arrest, charged him with murder and included enhancements for the use of a deadly weapon and alleged gang activity, potentially leading to a lengthy sentence if he is convicted.
Edi Faal, an attorney based in Los Angeles, stated that he has been Davis' personal attorney for over two decades and is assisting in finding a lawyer in Nevada. However, he refrained from making further comments.
Davis declined an interview request from the AP while in jail.
Davis had long been considered a suspect in Tupac's murder, and he openly admitted his involvement in interviews preceding his 2019 memoir, "Compton Street Legend." His statements reignited the police investigation, leading to the recent indictment.
Prosecutors allege that Shakur's murder was rooted in a rivalry within the gangsta rap genre between East Coast Bloods associated with Marion "Suge" Knight and West Coast Crips led by Davis.
The conflict escalated on September 7, 1996, following a brawl between Shakur and Davis' nephew, Orlando "Baby Lane" Anderson, at the MGM Grand hotel-casino after a boxing match. Knight and Shakur attended the fight, along with members of the South Side Crips and Mob Piru gang members linked to Knight.
Following the casino altercation, Shakur was fatally shot while sitting in a BMW at a red light on the Las Vegas Strip when a white Cadillac pulled alongside and gunfire erupted. Shakur succumbed to his injuries, while Knight sustained a minor injury.
Davis claimed he was in the front passenger seat of the Cadillac and handed a gun to his nephew in the back seat, from which the shots were fired. In Nevada, aiding another person in committing a murder can lead to a murder conviction.
Among the four individuals in the Cadillac that night, Davis is the only survivor. Anderson, the backseat passenger, died in 1998. The other backseat passenger, DeAndre "Big Dre" or "Freaky" Smith, passed away in 2004, and the driver, Terrence "Bubble Up" Brown, was killed in a 2015 shooting.
Suge Knight, currently 58 years old, is serving a 28-year prison sentence for a separate incident in which he ran over and killed a businessman in 2015.
Sheriff Kevin McMahill, overseeing the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, addressed criticisms of a slow investigation into Shakur's murder, denying any delay and emphasizing the importance of the case to the department.
Sekyiwa "Set" Shakur, Tupac's sister, described Davis' arrest as a pivotal moment but did not express praise for the authorities involved, highlighting the silence surrounding the case over the past 27 years.
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