Tupac Murder Trial Highlights a Persistent Diddy Conspiracy Theory

The trial of the former L.A. gang leader accused of orchestrating the shocking 1996 murder of rapper Tupac Shakur in a drive-by shooting in Las Vegas ended its first week on Friday with major evidence shown to the jury, including secret audio of the defendant’s admission to police decades ago of his involvement and the reemergence of the theory that imprisoned mogul Sean “ Diddy ” Combs ordered the hit.

Duane “Keffe D” Davis is facing one count of murder with the use of a deadly weapon in a Las Vegas court for his alleged involvement in the murder of rap icon Shakur and attempted murder of Death Row Records honcho Suge Knight. Prosecutors claim Davis orchestrated the attack that killed Shakur on Sept. 7, 1996, and that his nephew, Orlando “Baby Lane” Anderson — who Tupac’s crew had roughed up earlier that day — was in a rented Cadillac when it pulled up alongside the record label owner’s BMW off the Vegas Strip. Gunshots were exchanged, leaving Knight injured and Shakur mortally wounded; Shakur died days later from his injuries. Related Stories Music Tupac Murder Trial Begins as Prosecution Calls Rapper's Death "An Act of Revenge" News Selena Gomez's Mental Health Startup Was a Sham, Investors Claim in Federal Lawsuit

Audio from a conversation between Davis and investigators — which prosecutors say amounts to a full confession from the former Compton Crips capo — was played for the jury on Thursday. In it, Davis laments the state of life as a street gangster in Los Angeles and complains about the younger generation coming up in that world, before telling LAPD detectives about the 1996 shooting in an apparent bid to avoid prosecution on unrelated drug charges that would have carried a hefty sentence. He describes renting the car that pulled up to Knight’s vehicle and says his nephew fired the fatal shot.

“He leaned over on the window. He rolled down the window, popped ’em,” Davis said, according to the recording. “If they drove on my side, I would have popped ’em, know what I’m saying. But they was on the other side.”

LAPD Detective Daryn Dupree testified that when he was assigned to investigate the 1997 murder of rapper Christopher “Biggie Smalls” Wallace in Los Angeles, he interviewed Davis, who told him Bad Boy Records founder Combs had offered $1 million to whoever killed Shakur and Knight. To pursue Combs’ alleged involvement, Davis was brought in as a confidential informant and flown to New York to meet a man who was supposed to deliver the payment.

Dupree told the court Davis said he could “rekindle that relationship with [a contact named] Zip Martin and [discuss] the money that was given from Sean ‘Puffy’ Combs to Mr. Martin that never got to Mr. Davis.” But the meeting fell through — Davis was instead connected with the contact’s nephew, and the lead went nowhere.

Combs has repeatedly denied the allegation and has never been charged in connection with Shakur’s death.

Still, it’s a persistent alternative narrative that has resurfaced many times in the decades since the killing devastated the rap community.