Key Figures Present on the Night of Tupac's 1996 Murder
WHO:
ABC News - Duane “Keffe D” Davis is the last living suspect in the 1996 death of rapper Tupac Shakur.
ABC News - Marion “Suge” Knight was driving the black BMW in which Tupac was a passenger.
ABC News - Tupac Shakur was born Lesane Parish Crooks in 1971.
ABC News - Afeni Shakur and Mutulu Shakur were Tupac's late mother and stepfather, respectively.
ABC News - Sekyiwa “Set” Shakur and Maurice “Mopreme” Shakur are Tupac's siblings.
ABC News - Orlando “Baby Lane” Anderson was suspected to be the gunman.
ABC News - Deandrae “Freaky” Smith, also known as “Big Dre,” was in the back seat of the Cadillac.
ABC News - Terry “Bubble Up” Brown was driving the Cadillac from which the shots were fired.
WHAT:
NBC News - Duane “Keffe D” Davis faces a single count of murder with a deadly weapon with the intent to promote, further or assist a criminal gang in Shakur’s death.
NBC News - The trial is expected to last about a month.
NBC News - Prosecutors allege that Davis orchestrated the shooting to get revenge after Shakur and his entourage beat up Davis’ nephew, Orlando “Baby Lane” Anderson, at the MGM Grand hours before Shakur was killed.
NBC News - Davis' memoir states that Shakur and his entourage “crossed the line” when they beat up Anderson.
NBC News - Davis claims to have seen Shakur reach for a weapon during the encounter, stating that “one of my guys from the back seat grabbed the Glock and started bustin’ back.”
ABC News - Duane “Keffe D” Davis pleaded not guilty to charges of orchestrating the drive-by shooting that killed Tupac Shakur.
ABC News - Davis described Knight and himself as the “only living eyewitnesses to what truly happened” in his memoir.
ABC News - Denvonta Lee testified that it was Deandrae “Freaky” Smith who shot Shakur and Knight, contradicting the belief that Anderson pulled the trigger.
ABC News - Duane “Keffe D” Davis is accused of orchestrating the drive-by shooting that killed Tupac Shakur and wounded Suge Knight.
ABC News - Davis' jury trial will begin on Aug. 10.
ABC News - Tupac Shakur died a week after being shot at the age of 25.
ABC News - The shooting stemmed from competition between East Coast members of a Bloods gang sect and West Coast members of a Crips sect.
ABC News - Shakur had five No. 1 albums and was nominated for six Grammy Awards.
ABC News - Shakur's fourth solo album, “All Eyez on Me,” sold approximately 5 million copies.
ABC News - Knight is currently serving a 28-year prison sentence for running over and killing a Compton businessman in January 2015.
WHERE:
ABC News - The shooting occurred near the Las Vegas Strip.
ABC News - The brawl involving Anderson took place at the MGM Grand casino.
WHEN:
ABC News - The drive-by shooting occurred on Sept. 7, 1996.
ABC News - Davis was arrested in 2023.
ABC News - Davis' trial is set to begin on Aug. 10.
WHY:
NBC News - The shooting was described as a culmination of a longstanding feud between rival record labels — Death Row Records and Bad Boy Records — and rival gang sects Mob Piru and South Side Compton Crips.
ABC News - The shooting was believed to be an act of retaliation for a brawl involving Anderson and Shakur.
HOW:
NBC News - Davis passed a gun to the back seat earlier that night, according to his book.
ABC News - Davis stated that he obtained a handgun from an associate and tossed it into the back seat of the Cadillac but did not specify who fired the fatal shots.
ABC News - Davis obtained a handgun from an associate and tossed it into the back seat of the Cadillac.
ABC News - The Cadillac and the gun used in the shooting were never recovered.
(UPDATED August 5, 2026 16:10 UTC)
Duane “Keffe D” Davis is facing a single count of murder with a deadly weapon, accused of orchestrating the shooting of Tupac Shakur in retaliation for an earlier altercation involving Shakur's entourage and Davis' nephew. The trial is expected to last about a month, and prosecutors allege that the shooting was the result of a long-standing feud between rival record labels and gang sects. In his memoir, Davis claims he witnessed Shakur reaching for a weapon during the encounter, stating that he had passed a gun to the back seat earlier that night.
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(UPDATED August 5, 2026 13:40 UTC)
Duane “Keffe D” Davis has pleaded not guilty to charges related to the drive-by shooting that killed Tupac Shakur, asserting in his memoir that he and Suge Knight are the “only living eyewitnesses to what truly happened.” In a surprising twist, Denvonta Lee testified that it was Deandrae “Freaky” Smith who actually shot Shakur and Knight, challenging the long-held belief that Anderson was the shooter. Davis claimed he acquired a handgun from an associate and tossed it into the back seat of the Cadillac, but he did not clarify who fired the fatal shots.
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(UPDATED August 5, 2026 11:23 UTC)
Duane “Keffe D” Davis is the last living suspect in the 1996 death of rapper Tupac Shakur, who was shot in a drive-by incident orchestrated by Davis, and his jury trial is set to begin on August 10. The shooting, which occurred near the Las Vegas Strip, stemmed from a rivalry between East Coast members of a Bloods gang sect and West Coast members of a Crips sect, and it was believed to be retaliation for a previous brawl involving Orlando “Baby Lane” Anderson and Tupac. Though Tupac died a week after the shooting at the age of 25, he left behind a remarkable legacy with five No. 1 albums and a significant impact on the music industry.