Duane Keith Davis known by some as “Keffe D,” has pleaded not guilty in a Las Vegas Court after he was arrested weeks ago in connection with Tupac Shakur’s death.
The 60-year-old former Compton gang member made his stance in the case clear on Thursday which happened to be his third scheduled arraignment on a charge of murder with the use of a deadly weapon in a gang-related homicide.
According to CNN, Davis was accused of masterminding the September 1996 shooting that led to the untimely demise of Tupac Shakur.
Davis was arrested on September 29 and has been held without bail. He waived his right to a trial in 2 months. The next status check on his case is set for November 7.
Following the plea, Davis is said to have told the court that he was working on legal representation. He was however informed that the state was going to find legal counsel for him.
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This follows the breakdown of talks between Davis’ side and Attorney Ross Goodman, who two weeks prior, had appeared in court with the suspect.
According to Goodman, he was off the case due to an agreement breakdown but was looking to get Davis’ people to put together some finances so he (Goodman) could get back on the case.
Tupac Shakur, the 25-year-old trailblazer whose brief, prolific career cemented his legacy as one of the most influential hip-hop artistes of all time had his life snuffed out of him on September 7, 1996, due to gang-related differences.
After almost two and a half decades, Tupac’s murder case gained some ground and momentum in 2018. Davis was fingered as the ringmaster of the plot to kill Shakur, which investigations indicate was retaliation for an attack on Davis’ nephew, Orlando Anderson.
Tupac, originally named Lesane Parish Crooks and later took the name, Tupac Amaru Shakur, was shot 4 times in what many say was a traffic stop drive-by and died from the wounds six days later.