All eyes might be on the Tupac murder trial in Las Vegas right now, but in Los Angeles, Lil Durk is officially facing the court in his murder-for-hire case. Opening statements took place on Monday with the prosecutors claiming that Durk was “consumed by revenge” following the death of King Von. Assistant U.S. Atty. Daniel Weiner said Durk paid hitmen to ambush Quando Rondo, which led to Lul Pab’s death.
“This is a case about revenge, stalking and premeditated murder,” Weiner told jurors, per the Los Angeles Times. “It was defendant Banks’ beef, it was defendant Banks’ money, it was defendant Banks’ hit men.”
Marissa Goldberg, Durk’s attorney, countered the arguments, claiming that Kavon “Vonni” Grant, King Von’s friend and former personal assistant to Durk, masterminded the whole thing and tried to pin it on a “big fish” like Durk once caught. Vonni is expected to testify in the case.
“Mr. Banks had nothing to do with it,” Goldberg said. “He was not there, he was not connected to it.”
Lil Durk’s Defense Pushes Back
Goldberg argued that it was Vonni who ultimately purchased the hotels, cars, and ski masks before the shooting took place. While prosecutors claimed that Durk used “coded language” to offer bounties and rewards to those who participated in exacting revenge on Quando Rondo, Goldberg argued that the “All My Life” rapper didn’t pay anyone and that there’s “no money to follow.” “This is a murder-for-hire allegation where nobody gets paid,” Goldberg said. “There is no evidence because that evidence against Mr. Banks does not exist.”
Moreover, Durk’s attorney fired back at the use of music and lyrics as evidence, stating that they will “try to say it’s hatred.”
