Lil Durk Acquitted of Murder-for-Hire in Los Angeles Trial

A federal jury in Los Angeles on Friday acquitted Grammy-winning rapper Lil Durk of murder-for-hire and related charges in connection with a 2022 shooting that killed the cousin of rival rapper Quando Rondo.

The jury deliberated for three days before finding Durk, 33, not guilty of conspiracy, stalking resulting in death and murder for hire. The Chicago artist, whose legal name is Durk Banks, is best known for the 2023 hit "All My Life."

Prosecutors had alleged that Durk paid to have Rondo killed after someone in Rondo's entourage fatally shot rapper King Von, a close friend of Durk's and a member of his Only The Family hip-hop collective, at an Atlanta nightclub in 2020. According to the prosecution, a group of men flew to Los Angeles in August 2022 with funds provided by Durk, followed Rondo and his crew, and three gunmen fired on his Escalade near the Beverly Center shopping mall. Rondo survived, but his 24-year-old cousin, Saviay'a Robinson, known as Lul Pab, was killed.

Durk's co-defendants, Deandre Wilson and David Lindsey, were convicted of conspiracy to commit stalking, stalking using a dangerous weapon and stalking resulting in death. Both were acquitted of murder for hire.

"We thank the jury for seeing there was no murder for hire," Wilson's attorney Craig Harbaugh said in an email. "We are confident the remaining counts will not survive our pending motion for acquittal." Attorneys for Durk and Lindsey did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli said in a statement that the jury had "delivered justice to the family of Saviay'a Robinson" by convicting Wilson and Lindsey of stalking resulting in Robinson's death. He added that while the government was disappointed with the verdict regarding Durk, it looked forward to presenting evidence at his second trial.

Durk remained in custody pending a forthcoming trial on a racketeering count that was severed from this case. He has been jailed since his 2024 arrest.

Supporters including music stars Machine Gun Kelly and Ye, the artist formerly known as Kanye West, appeared in the audience during the two-week trial in downtown Los Angeles. Large groups of fans, livestreamers and other content creators gathered outside the courthouse.

Durk won a Grammy earlier that year for Best Melodic Rap Performance for "All My Life," which features J. Cole. He has been nominated for three other Grammys and was a featured performer on Drake's "Laugh Now Cry Later."