Dharitri Ganguly
Former gang boss Duane "Keffe D" Davis has been found guilty of orchestrating the murder of Tupac Shakur - the first conviction in a cold case that has intrigued hip-hop fans for nearly 30 years. The jury found Davis guilty of one count of murder with a deadly weapon for the rap superstar's death in a drive-by shooting in Las Vegas on September 7, 1996.
Tupac was 25 when he was slain at the height of his career as one of rap's most influential voices. He has sold more than 75 million records worldwide
On the night of September 7, 1996, Tupac was in the passenger seat of a black BMW that rap music mogul Marion “Suge” Knight was driving when a white Cadillac pulled up on their right side and gunfire erupted. Marion was wounded but survived. Tupac died a week later at the hospital.
Police and prosecutors say the shooting stemmed from a fierce competition for dominance in a musical genre that pitted East Coast members of a Bloods gang sect against West Coast members of a Crips sect that Davis has said he led in Compton, California.
Tupac had five No. 1 albums, was nominated for six Grammy Awards and was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2017. He received a posthumous star in 2023 on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and he will appear in the upcoming video game Stranger than Heaven.