A Las Vegas jury on Monday convicted Duane Keith Davis, 63, of first-degree murder for orchestrating the 1996 killing of Tupac Shakur, delivering a verdict nearly 30 years after the rapper's death. After roughly three hours of deliberation, the 12 jurors found Davis guilty of obtaining the gun and pursuing Shakur during a gang conflict intertwined with the East Coast–West Coast hip-hop feud. Shakur, 25, was shot four times on Sept. 7, 1996, while stopped at a traffic light in a black BMW and died days later. His death, followed six months later by the murder of Christopher Wallace (the Notorious B.I.G.), became twin unsolved tragedies.

The case languished for decades as evidence went missing and witnesses like Marion Knight (known as Suge) refused to cooperate. The breakthrough came in 2008 when Davis, seeking to avoid life in prison on drug charges, began speaking to police. Believing he had immunity, he later detailed the shooting publicly in podcasts, a documentary, and a 2019 memoir, "Compton Street Legend." Prosecutors used those statements to indict him in 2023.

At trial, prosecutor Marc Di Giacomo argued Davis admitted guilt "seven or eight times over 30 years." Defense attorney Michael Sanft countered that the case relied on presumptions and Davis's own inconsistent statements. Davis, known as Keffe D, vowed to appeal. Sentencing is set for Oct. 13, with a maximum penalty of life in prison.