Search in Tupac Shakur case tied to man who says he was with killer

Tupac Shakur killing: Vegas-area search linked to man who claims he was in car with killer

Tupac Shakur in a head-and-shoulders vertical frame, looking at the camera in a relaxed yet direct way

July 19, 2023 12:53 PM PT

A home in a Las Vegas suburb searched Monday night by Las Vegas police in connection with the unsolved slaying of Tupac Shakur is tied to a man who previously said publicly he was in the car with the shooter, sources have told The Times.

In a renewed investigation into the 1996 shooting death of the hip-hop legend, Las Vegas detectives obtained a search warrant from a judge, and along with a SWAT team, pulled up in a procession of law enforcement vehicles to the Henderson, Nev., home.

Using a bullhorn, a supervisor with the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department ordered the residents to come out with their hands up — and empty — according to security camera footage from a neighboring home.

Investigators then entered the house, where they sought computers, files and other items potentially related to Shakur’s killing, according to a source familiar with the investigation who was not authorized to comment on it publicly.

A statement issued Tuesday by Las Vegas police is the first time in years that any law enforcement agency has publicly revealed it is actively pursuing inquiries in the Sept. 7, 1996, shooting.

“LVMPD can confirm a search warrant was served in Henderson, Nevada, on July 17, 2023, as part of an ongoing investigation,” the statement said. “We will have no further comment at this time.”

Las Vegas police have refused to confirm the address that was searched. But sources and public records indicate the home is connected to a relative of Duane Keith “Keffe D” Davis.

In his book, “Compton Street Legend,” Davis — a self-described South Side Compton Crips gang member — says he was inside the car that pulled alongside Shakur just off the Las Vegas Strip and opened fire. He has never identified the gunman.

Davis has said he is the uncle of Orlando Anderson, another Crips member identified early on as a suspect in Shakur’s slaying. Anderson was killed in a gang shootout in Compton a year and a half after Shakur’s death.

Neither Davis nor the listed resident of the home returned phone calls Wednesday.

Nevada does not have a statute of limitations for prosecuting homicide cases and can, under certain circumstances, hold responsible those in the getaway vehicle even though they did not pull the trigger.

Shakur was gunned down while riding in a BMW driven by Marion “Suge” Knight. Knight, then-owner of Shakur’s record label, was leading a procession of luxury vehicles past the MGM Grand Hotel and Caesars Palace on their way to a hot new nightclub.

It was after 11 p.m. on a Saturday when the BMW paused at Flamingo Road and Koval Lane, a block from the Vegas Strip. Shakur was flirting with women in a nearby car, unaware that a white Cadillac had quietly pulled alongside the BMW. A hand emerged from the Cadillac, pointing a semiautomatic pistol straight at Shakur.

Four gunshots struck the legendary hip-hop artist, and one grazed Knight. Shakur died from his injuries six days later. He was 25.

Despite investigations by both Vegas and Los Angeles police as well as federal agencies, plus myriad theories involving conflicts, no one has ever been arrested in the killing.

Las Vegas police previously investigated Anderson in connection with the slaying. He was identified as having been involved in a physical altercation with Knight, Shakur and his bodyguards on the night of the fatal shooting. Anderson, 21, was a member of the Southside Crips. Shakur and Knight were affiliated with a rival Compton gang, the Mob Piru Bloods; Shakur’s bodyguards were also members of the Bloods.

Shakur’s death — and that of New York rival Notorious B.I.G.,who was slain six months after Shakur — has long been the subject of conspiracy theories and documentaries, including USA Network’s “Unsolved,” A&E’s “Who Killed Tupac?” and the 2015 movie “Murder Rap: Inside the Biggie and Tupac Murders.”

Last month, Shakur received his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2017, his first year of eligibility.

Times staff writer Kenan Draughorne contributed to this report.