‘Revenge in Los Angeles’: Lil Durk murder-for-hire trial heads to jury

A federal jury in Los Angeles began deliberating the fate of Grammy-winning rapper Durk Banks, known as Lil Durk, and two codefendants charged with paying associates to stalk and kill rival rapper Quando Rondo. Masked shooters missed Rondo but killed his 24-year-old cousin, Saviay'a Robinson, in a West Hollywood alley; prosecutors say the plot was revenge for the 2020 killing of Banks' friend King Von, financed on Banks' own credit card.

Defense attorneys spent closing arguments attacking three cooperating witnesses as snitches and accusing an LAPD detective of implicit bias for calling Banks a 'gangster with money.' Prosecutors countered with flight records, texts telling associates not to book flights under names connected to Banks, and testimony from the plot's alleged shooters and Banks' former assistant.

Each of the three defendants faces five counts, including murder-for-hire and stalking charges, with a possible sentence of life in prison. The courtroom scene has drawn fan crowds, content creators, and 'Free Durk' signs outside, suggesting the circus outside may outlast whatever the jury decides inside.

The full dispatch is available from the source below.