Tupac Shakur’s stepbrother, Maurice “Mopreme” Shakur, has filed a wrongful death lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court against Duane “Keefe D” Davis and a group of unidentified defendants, alleging a broader conspiracy in the 1996 killing of the rap icon.
The civil complaint comes as Davis—the only person criminally charged in the case—awaits trial later this year. He has pleaded not guilty to a first-degree murder charge and is scheduled to face trial in August.
In the filing issued on Wednesday, Maurice Shakur argues that recent developments, including grand jury materials and a documentary, have surfaced new leads suggesting that additional individuals may have been involved in planning or executing the attack.
Tupac Shakur was shot on September 7, 1996, while riding in a BMW along the Las Vegas Strip. A white Cadillac pulled alongside the vehicle, and a gunman opened fire, striking the rapper multiple times. He later died from his injuries, and the case remained unsolved for decades.
The lawsuit names Davis and “John Does 1 through 100,” described as individuals who may have participated in financing, directing, or carrying out the alleged conspiracy. The filing seeks damages and aims to identify and hold accountable any parties involved.
“For the first time in nearly 30 years, threads are starting to come together,” the complaint states, while acknowledging that some potential witnesses or suspects have since died or remain unidentified.
A significant breakthrough came in 2023 when Las Vegas authorities charged Davis, citing statements from his 2019 memoir Compton Street Legend, in which he placed himself at the scene. Prosecutors allege he orchestrated the attack as retaliation for an earlier altercation.
With both criminal proceedings and the new civil action underway, the case is entering a renewed phase of legal scrutiny nearly three decades after Tupac Shakur’s death.
