Lil Durk has been acquitted of all charges accusing him of orchestrating a murder-for-hire conspiracy that targeted Quando Rondo and ultimately killed the rival rapper’s cousin.
A jury in Los Angeles federal court deliberated for three days before finding the Chicago drill star (Durk Banks) not guilty on Friday (Sept. 11) of murder-for-hire, stalking and conspiracy counts that could have subjected him to life in prison, Billboard confirmed. Durk’s alleged co-conspirators, David “Browneyez” Lindsey and Deandre “OTF Dede” Wilson, were convicted of stalking and conspiracy but acquitted of murder-for-hire as well. They’ll be sentenced at a later date.
Durk remains in custody, since he still faces an additional racketeering charge that accuses him of operating his OTF label as a violent gang. Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald excluded that new count from the original trial and scolded prosecutors for tacking it on at the last minute. A second trial is currently scheduled for Oct. 5.
Durk’s attorney, Drew Findling, said the defense team is “so elated and proud” while speaking outside the courthouse following the verdict. “22 months ago, Durk and I made an agreement that we would make history with the greatest verdict in this country, and it happened today,” said Findling. “Durk is not guilty of all charges.”
“So now we work to get pull the shackles off,” added Findling. “The shackles must come off, and he must walk free so that he can come home to his beautiful family and to the world that loves him.”
A rep for the prosecution did return a request for comment.
Prosecutors claimed during a two-week trial that Durk ordered his Only the Family (OTF) crew to murder Rondo in retaliation for the 2020 killing of his close friend and collaborator King Von. Rondo was shot at a Los Angeles gas station in 2022 and survived, but his cousin Saviay’a Robinson, also known as Lul Pab, was killed in the crossfire.
The case rested largely on testimony from three alleged participants in the plot who pled guilty and became government cooperators: Kacey “OTF Jam” Hester, Keith “Flacka” Jones, and Kavon “Vonnie” Grant. The trio told jurors that Durk planned for a group of shooters to travel from Chicago to Los Angeles in 2022 and offered cash rewards for the attack, though no payments were ever completed.
The jury also heard some of Durk’s music during the trial, including his top 40 hits “Who Want Smoke??”, “Ahhh Ha” and “Pissed Me Off.” Prosecutors argued that Durk telegraphed the Rondo murder plot in these tracks, such as in the “Ahhh Ha” lyrics, “Don’t respond to s–t with Von/ I’m like, ‘f–k it, you trippin’, go get your gun’/ They droppin’ locations, I’m gettin’ it done/ F–k tweetin’, we slidin’, the feds are comin’.”
Durk has consistently maintained that he had nothing to do with the shooting. His lawyers argued throughout the trial that the cooperating witnesses were lying and that Vonnie, who had access to Durk’s credit cards as his personal assistant, was the real mastermind of the plot.
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Defense attorneys said Vonnie and the other cooperators falsely pinned the blame on Durk because the famous rapper was a “big fish” that they could hand over to prosecutors and, in exchange, get shorter prison sentences of their own. They leaned hard into attacking Vonnie’s credibility, playing recordings of jailhouse phone calls where he said the trial would be his “time to shine” and “perform.”
Durk’s team also strongly urged the jury not to give any weight to his lyrics, saying his music is artistic expression tailored towards commercial appeal and does not reflect any literal plans or admissions. The use of rap lyrics in criminal trials is a controversial practice that’s been banned by many states but remains legal in federal prosecutions.
Durk’s trial has captivated the hip-hop world, drawing droves of fans sporting in “Free Durk” t-shirts. Even fellow artists like Ye (formerly Kanye West) and mgk have shown up to court to lend support to Durk.
The Chicago native, who rose to fame in his hometown’s drill scene before signing with Def Jam and later Alamo Records, was at the peak of his career when he was arrested in 2024 while attempting to get on a flight to Dubai. He had just two years prior achieved his first his first solo No. 1 album on the Billboard 200, 7220. His follow-up, Almost Healed, debuted at No. 3 on the chart in 2023.
This story was updated on Sept. 11 at 9:40 p.m. ET to add a statement from Durk’s lawyer.
