On September 29, 2023, Las Vegas authorities arrested Duane “Keffe D” Davis for Tupac Shakur’s murder. According to AP News, a grand jury indicted Davis on one count of murder with a deadly weapon. “Duane Davis was the shot caller for this group of individuals that committed this crime, and he orchestrated the plan,” Lt. Jason Johansson explained at a press conference.
While some may be surprised by the break in the case, former prosecutor Joshua Ritter, a criminal defense attorney at the Los Angeles-based firm El Dabe Ritter Trial Lawyers, who was a Los Angeles deputy district attorney for six years, told Nicki Swift that the arrest was a long time coming. Prior to his arrest, Davis opened up about being in the car from which the deadly shots were fired in a 2018 interview with BET and a 2019 sit-down with VladTV. “When Duane ‘Keffe D’ Davis admitted in media interviews that he was in the passenger seat of the [white] Cadillac, that was enough for prosecutors,” Ritter shared.
Ritter added that after authorities executed a search warrant, it solidified their longstanding suspicions of Davis. “It allowed police to confirm what they already had learned. They’d have wanted to make sure they went through all the necessary steps,” Ritter said. Lastly, the criminal lawyer theorized that Davis’ bragging may have also led to his indictment. “Davis probably talked so openly about the killing because members of street gangs can’t help themselves,” Ritter added. “At the end of the day, gang members like Davis want the street cred. There’s a reason that term exists.”