Tupac Shakur shooting suspect Keefe D branded ‘dumb’ for boasting about his role in the murder by rapper’s pal
GANGSTER Keefe D is at the center of a criminal probe of Tupac Shakur’s death because he is “dumb as f***,” the rapper’s friend and former security enforcer has revealed.
In an exclusive interview with the U.S. Sun, Death Row Records enforcer Mob James claims Keefe’s ego and greed have sparked Las Vegas Metropolitan Police’s renewed probe into the Tupac case – 27 years after his death.
Speaking on the anniversary of Tupac’s shooting, James believes that Keefe will face charges after a grand jury hearing and is likely to be convicted of a murder charge.
Los Angeles gangster Keefe confessed in his memoir and several media interviews how he was part of a Compton Crip gang, which hunted down Tupac and handed a Glock to killer nephew Orlando Anderson on September 7, 1996.
James, who has reverted to his given name James McDonald after leaving the gang life behind, also revealed how he thinks Keefe will be a target should he be imprisoned in Nevada.
“What Keefe did is took it to the extreme,” James, 58, said.
“He got to telling too many people that he did it, and that he was a part of it.
“And I can understand you want to make money, you want to be part of the fame, you want to be in the social media life.
‘BIG MISTAKE’
“But he made a big mistake talking too much. And now he’s regretting it.
“And he should have walked away and lived his life.
“But no, he couldn’t do that …. $4,000 can’t get me out of prison.
“So, all that little money he was making is gone.
“I don’t want to speak bad on him, but I can say he f****ed up big time.
“(He should have) shut the f*** up, move on with your life because just regular, this ain’t no gang member you killed – it’s Tupac.
“And even though you didn’t pull the trigger, you were a part of that. And you putting yourself in a situation you shouldn’t.”
PLEA DEAL
In 2009, Keefe detailed how he was in the car with Anderson, who fired on Tupac in Vegas, as part of an immunity agreement – known as a “proffer” deal with the LAPD.
His tape-recorded confession came with a guarantee from an LAPD task force that he would not be prosecuted.
However, that was negated when he spoke out in media interviews and his memoir Compton Street Legend in greater detail about the assassination.
Last month, two sources told The U.S. Sun that a criminal case was due to be brought against Keefe D “imminently” and the district attorney “is looking at first-degree murder potentially”.
“Unfortunately, after 20-something years, he got to pay the price now because he opened his mouth and continuing to open his mouth,” he said.
“He was dumb as f***.
“Unfortunately after 20 something years, he got to pay the price now because he [Keefe D] opened his mouth and continuing to open his mouth.”
Mob James
“If you know you got away with a crime, why would you talk about it publicly.
James says that officers within Metro Police were asking how the case could not be solved when “this motherf***** keeps saying: ‘I did it.’
He added: “It’s unheard of.
MOCKING THE SYSTEM
“He went out there and started mocking the system. He started talking s*** about the police.
“He started saying that they tried to frame it. They’re not framing you – you knew the camera was rolling.
“The money overwhelmed him.
“People was telling Keefe D to shut his goddamn mouth. But he wouldn’t shut up. He wrote a book.”
“Keefe is battling cancer and may die in jail.”
Mob James
James believes that the DA should have an “open and shut case”, adding that: “Keefe is battling cancer and may die in jail.”
“I believe he knows he’s going to jail.
“And they might give him 15 to 22 years.
“So regardless of what he gets at his age, he’s not coming home. He got cancer, he’s sick, and he might not outlive that.
“Keefe’s son has talked about his dad’s illness.
“He don’t like the sh*** that’s going on, but going to jail, they don’t give a f*** if you’re sick or not.”
PRISON TARGET
While the ’90s East-West Coast gang wars may be over, Keefe’s life may be under threat if he is put behind bars.
“There is a big possibility that people may want retribution,” James said.
“Tupac has got so many fans in Las Vegas, who are now grown men. So, he’s going to go to prison and meet that guy that liked Tupac and don’t like him (Keefe), and he might not be able to cut the mustard like he could 25 years ago.
“He going to have a problem in prison
“There ain’t no getting away from that.”
James, regarded as one of the toughest ’90s gang enforcers in LA working for Suge Knight’s Death Row Records, says rival Compton Crip Keefe has over-exaggerated his reputation.
‘HE’S A DAMN LIAR’
“The real Keefe D wasn’t s*** but a dope dealer. He wasn’t the gangster like Orlando,” he said.
“So, when he gets to talking about he was feared in jail and all that s***, he is a damn liar.
“I know him. The s*** he talked about today, he was nothing like that.”
James now is working to help youngsters stay away from street violence and gang communities across California and the US. He has a hit podcast Still Bombing, which promotes “helping people,” and works with youth benefit crypto currency Bejesus.
“But I believe I have made a difference. I have helped a lot of people. One guy reached out and said: ‘I didn’t bury my son because of you’. His son stopped hanging out with the gangs and graduated from high school.
“A lot of people are shocked about the gangs in LA and across the world still,” he said.
“I go places and talk to people and show these kids what they don’t want to do in life and where you are going to end up if you continue to live the life that you live.
Metro Police have previously declined to comment on the latest developments in the Tupac case, saying: “This is still an ongoing investigation,” while the DA’s office did not respond to requests for comment.