Web Desk: Former gang boss Duane "Keffe D" Davis has been found guilty of orchestrating the murder of Tupac Shakur - the first person convicted in a case that has baffled music fans for decades. The jury found Davis guilty of one count of murder with a deadly weapon for the rap superstar's death in a shooting in Las Vegas on 7 September 1996.
Davis stood impassively in the Las Vegas court as the verdict was read, before saying he would appeal. Shakur's relatives held hands, some hugging and crying. Shakur 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.
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 in the murder. They told the court that Davis planned the shooting as retaliation after Anderson was involved in a fight with Shakur in Las Vegas just hours earlier.
The key evidence in the case were Davis' own words, where he repeatedly and publicly acknowledged being inside the white Cadillac from where the deadly shots were fired. He had told authorities about his role in Shakur's death during a secret 2008 police interview related to the death of fellow rapper Notorious BIG, real name Christopher Wallace
For 30 years, the case remained one of America's most famous unsolved mysteries, spurring countless conspiracies but never a conviction.The murder happened at a time of intense rivalry between East and West coast rap crews and amidst gang feuds between the Bloods and Crips, which had deep roots within hip hop at the time.
Throughout the trial, Davis' defence team tried to persuade jurors that his comments were bravado and exaggeration intended to sell books and make money. In closing arguments, his lawyer Michael Sanft urged the jury to discredit his client as a liar who just told tales to sell books.
"There's no proof," he told the jury. However, within hours of the jury being handed the case on Monday, they reached a guilty verdict.
Shakur's family appeared emotional in court, with his sister embracing a prosecutor after the verdict was read while others sat crying nearby. Outside, devoted fans of Shakur were crying and cheering.
