LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — The son of the man accused of orchestrating the murder of rapper Tupac Shakur insists his father is innocent, adding he is a “liar and a fibber.”
Las Vegas Metro police arrested Duane “Keffe D” Davis, 61, on Sept. 29, 2023, near his Henderson home. The day before, a grand jury indicted him on a charge of murder with a deadly weapon with a gang enhancement. Davis has remained in custody on $750,000 bail since his September arrest.
During a conversation with more than 100 text messages with NewsNation affiliate KLAS, Keith Davis said his father “wouldn’t harm a fly.”
Duane Davis has publicly said he was sitting in the front passenger seat of the car, which pulled up side-by-side to Shakur’s, before the September 1996 shooting near the Las Vegas Strip. Marion “Suge” Knight, the then-head of Death Row Records, was driving the car with Shakur sitting in the passenger seat. Knight was injured in the shooting. Shakur died from his injuries several days later.
Prosecutors from the Clark County District Attorney’s Office cited public statements “Keffe D” made in his book, “Compton Street Legend,” as well as interviews when presenting evidence to the grand jury.
Duane Davis’ attorney, Carl Arnold, previously told the 8 News Now Investigators that his client was lying when making public statements about Shakur’s murder and that Davis should not be trusted.
Keith Davis said his father did not write “Compton Street Legend” and just put his name on it. The other author listed is Yusuf Jah. Keith Davis also insisted the book is fiction, and that his father published it and granted interviews to make money for his family because he could not work due to having cancer.
“The book is not about true facts,” Keith Davis said. Davis also insisted interviews his father did with Vlad Lyubovny for “Vlad TV” were entertainment.
Lyubovny has said Davis was paid for the interviews.
“So, Vlad read from a non-true book,” Keith Davis said. “Why would you talk about an open murder if you did do it?”
Keith Davis also addressed a conversation he had with his father from jail last October, which prosecutors said invoked gang ties.
Keith Davis told his father, “Around the city, they talking about it’s a green light on our side,” according to prosecutors.
“In defendant’s world, a ‘green light’ is an authorization to kill,” prosecutors said about the phone call. “This caused enough concern that the federal government stepped in and provided resources to at least one witness so he could change his residence.”
The call came after the state provided a deputy public defender with a list of cooperating witnesses, which the public defender, who was not even appointed to the case, then provided to Davis and his son, documents said.
Keith Davis told the 8 News Now Investigators that he meant the “green light” was on his family.
Keith Davis also said all his father cares about is his family, including his six grandchildren. He added “Keffe D” recently took up gardening.
Clark County District Court Judge Carli Kierny denied releasing Duane Davis from jail pending trial after another man posted his bond, saying she was concerned the bond was a de facto contract for future interviews.
Keith Davis said his father was being treated unfairly, saying he believes the criminal justice system is unfair to minorities, and that his father was not being treated properly in jail.
Duane Davis’ trial was scheduled to begin in November. Kierny will decide if the trial will start then during a hearing on Aug. 20.