TERRIFIED gangster Keefe D fears he may not live to fight to clear his name in court as his high-profile murder trial of rap icon Tupac Shakur is pushed to March 2025.
Duane “Keefe D” Davis has told friends that he worries about his safety behind bars and has become increasingly paranoid about his safety.
The U.S. Sun can exclusively reveal Keefe D, 61, whose own lawyer dubbed him the godfather of Compton, is uneasy that he may be attacked even while in protective custody at the Clark County Detention Center in Las Vegas.
Keefe’s friend told The U.S. Sun the jailed gangster said, “I don’t know if I’m going to make it in here.”
Keefe’s son, Duane Davis Jr., also told The U.S. Sun his father’s life is in danger while in custody.
“My dad would be safer out of there, man,” the younger Davis told The U.S. Sun.
Davis Jr. also complained that his father’s opportunity to be released on bond was wrongly quashed during a hearing in Las Vegas on Tuesday.
“That ain’t right,” Davis Jr. fired off, adding, “They violate people’s rights here.”
His comments referred to Judge Carli Kierny’s decision not to clear Keefe D’s bond following a source of funds hearing on Tuesday.
Keefe D had hoped to be out on house arrest with an electronic tag and await his trial at home after being charged with the September 1996 murder of rap legend Tupac Shakur.
His attorney, Carl Arnold, presented Kierny with limited documents and short, nonspecific emails from AG Entertainment, who, along with rapper Cash Wack 100, were willing to put down the $112,500 fee for Keefe’s bond.
However, Judge Kierny explained in detail how court staff encountered bizarre exchanges with staff at AG Entertainment when attempting to establish information about the fund’s sourcing.
Kierny noted that an email was sent to her by an “Adam W,” even though no such person works at the entertainment music firm.
During the same court hearing, Keefe made a staggering raft of accusations about being assaulted by unknown and unnamed correction officers in his cell on August 9.
Ashen-faced Keefe outrageously accused prosecutors of organizing for him to be beaten and have $300 worth of food stolen from his cell.
Those claims were denied by the District Attorney’s Office, with attorney Binu Palal telling The U.S. Sun he would “not dignify the claims with a response.”
Yet, Keefe continued his plea, telling the judge that his doctors had informed him that he could suffer potentially fatal consequences from any cut or open wound after being prescribed heavy-duty blood thinners as he battles cancer.
A family associate of Keefe told The U.S. Sun that the jailed gangster outburst in court on Tuesday stemmed from the year-long court process that has mounted since his arrest in September 2023.
“Keefe exploded in court because the tensions and fears, which have built up over the last year have now become big problems in his mind,” the family associate said.
“He made the claims about being attacked in jail to the judge because he felt that he had to get his story out to the world, knowing the media were listening.
“His worry is that he feels he may end up dead or severely ill before he gets the chance to stand trial for Tupac’s killing.
“He has long expressed concerns that he may be targeted by Blood gang members who want to seek revenge for his boasts about being a key shop caller in the killing of Tupac.
“He’s also adamant that what has been passed down the line to him is that there are people out there that want him dead, and it has now put him in a place where he worries.”
However, the family associate quickly changed his tune.
“Keefe fails to see that his situation is all brought upon himself and his big mouth,” they blasted.
“Has reaped what he sowed. He boasted for years about being a big-shot caller and obviously a key figure in the death of Tupac.
“Now that he’s behind bars, all of this has come home to roost, and there is a genuine sense that his life is in serious threat.
“There are people within his family who feel that he has been treated unfairly.”
The family insider continued, “The family supports Duane, and some feel that the rulings are always made against him.
“They are in denial somewhat about how Duane running his mouth off so much has caused his own issues.”
Another source connected to the Las Vegas legal system pushed back on all the claims that Keefe is not well protected inside.
“From the perspective of law enforcement, they are absolutely adamant that they want nothing to happen to him and have given him a priority protection,” the source said.
Keefe fails to see that his situation is all brought upon himself and his big mouth.
Family assoicate of Keefe D.
“It’s not in the district attorney or law enforcement authorities’ interest for anything to happen to Keefe, especially given how high profile the case is and how the world is watching.
“For him to simply state that he was attacked and make these claims is outrageous.
“But many convicted criminals will say anything in a bid to get out of protective custody and get home.
“The judge has been very understanding and lenient at times, allowing him and his lawyer to present their arguments and claims.
“Her concern is her decision-making process will not be questioned should he be convicted and appeal.”
The source added, “It is no secret that Keefe is utterly disappointed not to have been released on bail.
“He expected to make bail and get out for the New Year in 2023.
“Being locked up for so long has left him demoralized, upset, and concerned that he will never see anything but life behind prison bars ever again.
“With the trial being pushed to March next year, he now knows that he’ll spend his second Christmas behind bars, not with his family.
“And as strange as this may sound, Keefe is a dotting grandfather and loves his wider family.
“One of the interesting aspects of this case has been the fact that Keefe has had an awakening of how important his family and seeing his grandchildren grow up is. He is desperately missing those interactions.”
By The Sun’s Senior Reporter Emma Parry, who has been reporting on the Tupac murder for the past 10 years
TUPAC fans have been waiting for justice for the iconic rapper for almost 28 years.
Finally in September 2023 there appeared to be progress with the arrest of Duane “Keefe D” Davis – a former Southside Crip gangster from Compton, LA – who had been telling the world for years that he and his fellow “gang soldiers” were responsible for the hit.
I’ve been reporting on the case for several years and it always appeared pretty cut and dry…Keefe had spent the past decade gaining notoriety by boasting about his alleged involvement in the shooting – now he was finally getting what he deserves. But despite Keefe running his mouth for years, I now believe a guilty verdict in November’s trial is far from guaranteed.
Keefe describes in great detail in his memoir Compton Street Legend what went down the night Pac was shot, extracts from which The U.S. Sun has published.
He claimed that he was offered a million dollars by rapper Diddy to “handle” Tupac and Suge Knight and when he and his Crip gangsters came across the pair driving near the Strip in Las Vegas on September 7, 1996, Keefe alleged he passed the gun to his nephew Orlando “Baby Lane” Anderson who took the shot. Keefe said if Pac had been on his side: “I would have blast”.
Keefe repeated the claims multiple times over the years, on YouTube channels, documentaries, and even in taped confessions to police, when he believed he could not be prosecuted. In one confession to the LAPD, Keefe appeared completely remorseless telling detectives: “We didn’t give a f**k…The ambulance [for Tupac] was parked right here next to us. That s**t was as funny as a motherf**ker.”
The Sun has been publishing stories about Keefe’s self confessed involvement in the crime since 2018.
I sent many links to his confessions to Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, asking them why this man had not been arrested yet. They would thank me for the info but say that they could not comment because the case was still active. From the outside, it looked like no action was being taken at all.
We spoke to former detectives involved in the case and documentary makers who all felt utterly frustrated at the lack of progress in the case. We even published a plea from former LAPD detective Greg Kading, who had probed the murders, urging Las Vegas cops to arrest Keefe, back in 2020.
For years, the case appeared to have been forgotten and ignored, to be left forever unsolved.
But finally, in the summer of 2023, we got word from our sources that there had been a huge development in the case. A secret grand jury was due to be held on whether or not Keefe should be indicted. I was dubious at first but around the same time a house in Henderson, Nevada, linked to Keefe, was raided in July as part of the Tupac investigation.
Things were heating up.
Later that summer, behind closed doors, jurors listened to hours of testimony from former cops, detectives, and coroners involved in the Tupac case and gangsters and associates of Keefe’s and Pac’s from back in the day. They were shown graphic photos of Tupac’s bullet-ridden body. After days of evidence, they decided there was enough evidence to prosecute Keefe.
Once the secret documents were released I poured over the transcripts. While interesting, many of the witnesses were telling stories they’d heard second-hand. None of the prosecution witnesses had a clear look at who shot Pac. One witness Devonta Lee claimed another gangster called Big Dre took the shot – not Orlando. Maybe things weren’t as clear-cut as I first thought.
Keefe was then arrested on September 30, 2023 at his home. Bodycam footage we obtained from the scene showed Keefe bragging to cops even as he was handcuffed in the back of a police car – telling officers he was involved in the “biggest case in Las Vegas history”.
Following Keefe’s multiple appearances in court, he seems to have lost much of that bravado and now cuts a sad, lonely figure.
Suffering from various health problems as a result of cancer, he’s struggling to cope with the brutalities of jail life and can’t get together enough money to afford his bail. He feels some of his old Southside Crip associates – men he handed wads of cash to in his glory days, have just abandoned him.
Keefe is now desperate to get out of jail, and his defense stems is leaning on his claim that he completely made up his involvement in the Tupac murder for fame and money. He saw other people cashing in on the murder so he thought he would too. He reckons his confessions to police were all lies – he made it up because he was under a plea deal and thought it would help him beat his other charges.
And, according to his lawyer Carl Arnold, he wasn’t even in Las Vegas on the night of the shooting. Arnold remains convinced he will see his client walk free and their secret weapon could be former Death Row Records boss Suge.
As the only other person still alive from either car, Suge, currently in prison for a fatal hit and run, would be a key witness. Suge is the only person still alive who knows what went down – he saw the shooter. While he’s said he won’t testify at the November trial, Suge has claimed in a TMZ interview from prison that Orlando was not the shooter, which again throws into doubt Keefe’s version of events.
Keefe and his lawyer are hoping they might be able to change his mind and persuade him to testify for the defense. And Suge holds the power to blow the prosecution’s case apart.
And if Keefe walks free, will there ever be justice for Pac?
The U.S. Sun revealed how the ex-Compton gang leader launched into a furious rant at the deputy chief district attorneys inside the Las Vegas courtroom on Tuesday.
After being denied bond again, Keefe talked over his lawyer to claim a series of allegations about being assaulted while in jail.
An agitated Keefe told Judge Kierny that he feared dying in prison after he claimed he was beaten up in his cell.
The ex-gangster claimed that two correction officers attacked him, leaving him battered and bruised.
Keefe barked at the judge during the end of a trial readiness hearing and pointed at prosecutors, saying, “They brutally beat me up, attacked me, and assaulted me.
“I told them I had cancer and am on blood thinners.”
Keefe claimed that when he asked the correction officers for “their names, their sergeant ran them out the door.”
The desperate gangster also claimed that other prisoners saw the alleged attack and that a video camera may have been on during the altercation.
“You made very serious allegations regarding police brutality, and the DAs orchestrating some kind of attack on you. I was not made aware of this,” Judge Kierny told Keefe.
As Keefe tried to argue with Kierny, she urged him to have his lawyer file motions and present evidence to the court.
“That’s wrong,” Keefe snapped.
“I am on blood thinners… a bloody nose, and you can die.”
Keefe alleged that he complained to deputies, asking, “What is wrong with you guys? Have some compassion. This is wrong.”
Still, Kierny urged defense attorney Arnold to submit paperwork on behalf of his client, but not before Keefe fired back, “I wish they could be disciplined or fired. This is wrong.”
Keefe claimed there was a nurse’s note that confirmed his injuries.
The one-time Compton gang boss has spent eight months fighting to raise legitimate cash to be released on house arrest.
During Tuesday’s hearing, he was once again denied bond by Judge Kierny.
Keefe, who has pleaded not guilty to murder charges in connection to Tupac’s fatal drive-by shooting on September 13, 1996, will now face trial on March 17, 2025.
During a hearing in July, Arnold spent five minutes boasting about his client’s infamous past.
The defense attorney declared Keefe had the right to earn money as “one of most notorious” criminals in southern California and “godfather of Compton.”
He also noted that Keefe’s criminal reach with his “drug trade extended from here to New York to Arkansas.”
Arnold said that Keefe was even securing deals of “350 kilos of drugs with the Mexican cartel.”
