Diddy's Ex-Bodyguard Named on Potential Tupac Murder Witness List as Duane Davis Faces Trial

Eugene 'Gene' Deal, Sean 'Diddy' Combs' former bodyguard, has been named among the potential witnesses in the Las Vegas murder trial of Duane 'Keffe D' Davis, nearly 30 years after Tupac Shakur was killed in a drive-by shooting. Deal's inclusion has renewed attention on the long-running links between the case, Combs' Bad Boy Records and the bitter East Coast-West Coast rivalry that dominated hip-hop in the 1990s.

Davis, 63, has pleaded not guilty to murder with a deadly weapon with the intent to promote, further or assist a criminal gang. Jury selection began in Clark County District Court on 10 August, with prosecutors expected to present a case focused not on Davis as the gunman, but on allegations that he helped organise the attack and supplied the weapon used in Shakur's killing.

The prosecution's potential witness list contains 45 names, bringing together people from very different parts of the story. Among them are former Death Row Records security chief Reggie Wright Jr, former Las Vegas mayor Oscar Goodman, Nevada Governor Joe Lombardo, Shakur's family members and Suge Knight, who was driving the BMW when Shakur was shot.

Deal's name stands out because of his history with Combs and his longstanding involvement in discussions surrounding the murders of Shakur and The Notorious B.I.G.

Diddy's Former Bodyguard Appears on the Tupac Witness List

Deal worked as a bodyguard for Combs during the height of the Bad Boy Records era and was closely connected to the world surrounding The Notorious B.I.G., whose murder in Los Angeles followed Shakur's death by roughly six months.

His appearance on the witness list does not mean prosecutors have accused Combs of involvement in Shakur's killing. Combs is not charged in Davis' case.

Instead, Deal's past knowledge of the people and relationships surrounding the East Coast-West Coast feud could make his testimony relevant to the prosecution's wider account of events.

Deal has previously spoken publicly about people connected to both Combs and the Tupac investigation. In earlier accounts, he said he had encountered members of the South Side Compton Crips around Bad Boy events and described interactions involving people later associated with the Shakur case. Reporting on the current witness list identifies him alongside Kirk Burrowes, a founder of Bad Boy Records, as one of the figures prosecutors may call.

The Diddy connection has also persisted because of allegations made by Davis himself. In past interviews and accounts, Davis alleged that Combs had offered money for a hit involving Shakur and Knight. Those allegations have never resulted in Combs being charged over Shakur's death, and Combs has denied involvement.

What Keffe D's Trial Could Reveal About Tupac's Death

Shakur was shot on 7 September 1996 after a white Cadillac pulled alongside the BMW carrying the rapper and Knight near the Las Vegas Strip. Shakur was 25. He died six days later.

For years, the investigation stalled. Davis eventually became a central figure after making public statements about the shooting and co-writing the 2019 memoir Compton Street Legend, which prosecutors are expected to use as part of their case.

Davis has since attempted to distance himself from some of those statements, arguing that his past claims were made for attention and financial gain. His defence has also challenged the strength of the prosecution's evidence. Davis is not accused of personally firing the shots.

Prosecutors instead allege that he played a coordinating role and provided the firearm. His nephew, Orlando 'Baby Lane' Anderson, has long been regarded as a prime suspect in the shooting but was never charged. Anderson died in an unrelated gang shooting in 1998.

The witness list includes people who could help prosecutors reconstruct the hours before and after the shooting, from the confrontation involving Anderson at the MGM Grand to the events surrounding the fatal attack.

Suge Knight is particularly significant because he was in the car with Shakur when the gunfire erupted. Knight survived the attack and is now serving a 28-year sentence for voluntary manslaughter in an unrelated case. He has reportedly declined to cooperate with prosecutors in the Tupac trial, despite being one of the few surviving people directly present in the vehicle that night.

Deal, meanwhile, brings a different connection. His history with Combs places him within the Bad Boy circle that became central to the narrative surrounding Shakur's death and the subsequent killing of Biggie.

Whether his testimony ultimately addresses those links, or simply provides background on people and events surrounding the feud, remains to be seen. What is clear is that prosecutors have assembled a witness list designed to revisit not only the shooting itself, but the tangled network of rivalries and relationships surrounding one of hip-hop's most enduring mysteries.