Rapper Tupac Shakur was shot and mortally wounded on the Las Vegas Strip in 1996. He died six days later. (Photo: AP)
LAS VEGAS, (AP) – Las Vegas police confirmed Tuesday that they served a search warrant this week in connection with the long-unsolved killing of Tupac Shakur, propelling the case back into the spotlight nearly 30 years after his death.
One of the most prolific figures in hip hop, he was killed on the night of September 7, 1996, in a drive-by shooting in Las Vegas. He was 25.
No arrests have ever been made.
Yet, attention on the case, which has seen its share of conspiracy theories, has endured for decades.
The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department said in a statement that the search was conducted Monday in the nearby city of Henderson. It’s unclear what they were looking for and where they were looking.
Citing the ongoing investigation, department spokesperson Aden OcampoGomez said in a brief phone call that he couldn’t provide further details on the latest development in the case, including whether a suspect has been identified.
Nevada does not have a statute of limitations for prosecuting homicide cases.
Tupac Shakur was gunned down while sitting inside a black BMW with Marion “Suge” Knight, head of Death Row Records. Police have said the two were waiting at a red light near the Las Vegas Strip when a white Cadillac pulled up next to them and gunfire erupted.
Shot multiple times, Shakur was rushed to a hospital, where he died six days later.
Las Vegas police have said in the past that the investigation quickly stalled in part because witnesses refused to cooperate.
His death came amid his feud with rap rival the Notorious B.I.G., who was fatally shot six months later. At the time, both rappers were in the middle of the infamous East Coast-West Coast rivalry, which primarily defined the hip hop scene during the mid-1990s. The feud was ignited after Tupac Shakur was seriously wounded in another shooting during a robbery in the lobby of a midtown Manhattan hotel.
He openly accused B.I.G. and Sean “Diddy” Combs of having prior knowledge of the shooting, which both vehemently denied. The shooting sparked enough of a feud that created a serious divide within the hip hop community and fans.
The New York-born artiste represented the West Coast after he signed with Los Angeles-based Death Row Records. He often traded verbal jabs in the media and through songs. B.I.G. and Combs hailed from the East Coast while representing New York City-based Bad Boy Records.
You must log in to post a comment.