Lil Durk Acquitted in Quando Rondo Murder-for-Hire Trial but Still Behind Bars

Lil Durk was acquitted Friday in the federal murder-for-hire case accusing him of ordering a revenge attack on rapper Quando Rondo, a major courtroom victory for the Grammy winner after prosecutors spent weeks trying to tie him to a 2022 Los Angeles shooting that killed Rondo’s cousin.

The rapper, whose legal name is Durk Banks, will not be released from federal custody. A separate murder in aid of racketeering charge was severed from the trial and remains pending, leaving Banks behind bars despite the not guilty verdicts.

Jurors deliberated for three days before rejecting the government’s case against Banks. Two men tried alongside him, Deandre Wilson and David Lindsey, were convicted of stalking-related charges but acquitted of the murder-for-hire counts.

Banks had faced the possibility of life in federal prison if convicted.

Prosecutors accused him of using his money and influence within his Only The Family, or OTF, collective to arrange the killing of Quando Rondo, whose legal name is Tyquian Bowman. They alleged the planned attack was retaliation for the 2020 killing of Banks’ close friend and collaborator King Von.

On Aug. 19, 2022, three gunmen opened fire on the Cadillac Escalade carrying Bowman near the Beverly Center in Los Angeles. Bowman survived, but his 24-year-old cousin, Saviay’a Robinson, known as Lul Pab, was killed.

Banks was not accused of being one of the gunmen. Prosecutors instead sought to prove that he had set the attack in motion, relying on surveillance footage, communications, travel and financial records, and testimony from people who admitted participating in the plot.

Three cooperating witnesses became central to that effort.

Kacey “OTF Jam” Hester and Keith Jones admitted involvement in the shooting. Banks’ former personal assistant, Kavon “OTF Vonnie” Grant, testified that he helped obtain the stolen vehicle and firearms used in the attack and assisted with transporting participants.

Grant told jurors that Banks later asked whether the group had “got him” and appeared pleased after learning Robinson had been killed. Hester testified that Banks discussed retaliation against Rondo and said anyone who carried it out would be taken care of financially. Jones said he was told Banks had offered $1 million.

Defense attorneys Brian Steel and Drew Findling attacked the witnesses’ credibility, arguing that men facing serious criminal exposure had strong incentives to implicate Banks.

They also focused on what prosecutors could not show jurors: evidence that Banks actually paid anyone to kill Bowman.

The defense pointed instead toward Grant, portraying the former assistant as someone with access to Banks’ resources who could arrange vehicles, weapons, and travel without instructions from the rapper.

Banks’ music and public statements also became part of the government’s case.

Jurors saw an unreleased “Redman” video filmed in 2021 showing Banks mourning King Von before a fictionalized shooting involving a character prosecutors argued represented Rondo. Lyrics from “Pissed Me Off,” “Who Want Smoke??” and “Ahhh Ha” were also admitted as prosecutors sought to establish his motive and state of mind after King Von’s death.

Banks’ attorneys argued that music and fictional imagery did not prove he ordered an actual killing.

Another dispute centered on a 2023 interview with hip-hop personality DJ Akademiks. Prosecutors highlighted Banks’ response to a question about people telling him to “slide for Von,” a reference to avenging King Von’s death, and argued the exchange supported their retaliation theory.

The defense sought to introduce additional portions of the interview, saying the longer footage would give Banks’ comments more context. U.S. District Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald declined to reopen the evidence.

Friday’s verdict produced a sharply divided result. Wilson and Lindsey were convicted of stalking offenses connected to the deadly ambush, while jurors rejected the government’s attempt to prove that Banks was the man who ordered it.

Banks now faces a separate proceeding on the murder in aid of racketeering charge that Fitzgerald removed from this trial.