A Los Angeles jury acquitted Grammy-winning rapper Lil Durk, legally Durk Banks, 33, of all federal charges Friday in a murder-for-hire case tied to a 2022 shooting that killed Saviay’a Robinson, the cousin of rival rapper Quando Rondo. Despite the not-guilty verdict, Banks remains in federal custody ahead of a separate trial next month on racketeering murder and firearms charges.
Three days of deliberation. Three defendants. One verdict that split cleanly down the middle.
On Friday, a Los Angeles jury cleared Lil Durk — legally Durk Banks — of every federal charge connected to a 2022 ambush shooting near the Beverly Center, rejecting prosecutors’ theory that the Grammy-winning rapper had orchestrated a revenge killing against rival Quando Rondo. Outside the courthouse, a crowd of jubilant fans celebrated as the verdict spread. Inside federal custody, Banks stayed exactly where he was.
The Plot Prosecutors Described
According to federal prosecutors, the case traced back to 2020, when an associate of Quando Rondo — legally Tyquian Bowman — killed Banks’ close friend and collaborator, Dayvon “King Von” Bennett. Prosecutors alleged Banks spent the next two years plotting revenge: stalking Bowman, funding a hit, and ultimately setting an attack in motion through his Only The Family (OTF) collective.
That attack came on August 19, 2022, when three gunmen opened fire on the Cadillac Escalade carrying Bowman near the Beverly Center. Bowman survived. His 24-year-old cousin, Saviay’a Robinson — known as Lul Pab — did not.
Banks was never accused of pulling a trigger. Instead, prosecutors built their case on surveillance footage, financial and travel records, communications, and the testimony of cooperating witnesses who admitted their own roles in the plot.
The Witnesses Who Tried to Sink Him
Three names anchored the government’s case. Kacey “OTF Jam” Hester and Keith Jones both admitted involvement in the shooting itself. Banks’ own former personal assistant, Kavon “OTF Vonnie” Grant, testified he helped source the stolen vehicle and firearms and helped move the people involved.
Grant told jurors Banks later asked whether the group had “got him” — and seemed pleased when he learned Robinson had been killed. Hester testified Banks talked about retaliating against Rondo and promised to financially take care of whoever did it. Jones said he’d been told Banks offered $1 million for the job.
It was damning testimony on paper. It wasn’t enough in the room.
How the Defense Took the Case Apart
Defense attorneys Brian Steel and Drew Findling didn’t try to prove Banks was a saint — they tried to prove the witnesses were unreliable. Their argument: men facing serious prison time had every incentive to point fingers at the rapper with the deepest pockets.
More pointedly, the defense turned the spotlight on Kavon Grant himself, arguing the former assistant — not Banks — was the one who actually arranged the vehicles, weapons, and logistics behind the shooting, using access to Banks’ resources without ever needing his direct instruction.
Prosecutors also leaned on Banks’ own music. Jurors watched an unreleased “Redman” video from 2021 showing Banks mourning King Von ahead of a fictionalized shooting sequence prosecutors argued was a stand-in for Rondo. Lyrics from “Pissed Me Off,” “Who Want Smoke??” and “Ahhh Ha” were entered as evidence of motive. A 2023 DJ Akademiks interview, where Banks responded to a question about being told to “slide for Von,” became another flashpoint — prosecutors framed it as support for their retaliation theory, while the defense wanted more of the interview shown for context. U.S. District Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald declined to reopen that evidence.
In the end, the jury drew a hard line between fiction and fact — art and intent weren’t enough to bridge the gap prosecutors needed.
A Split Verdict
Banks’ two co-defendants didn’t walk away as clean. Deandre Dontrell Wilson and David Brian Lindsey were convicted of stalking and conspiracy to commit stalking, though they too were acquitted of the murder-for-hire counts. Banks was found not guilty across the board.
Free of This Case, Not Free of Custody
A not-guilty verdict would normally mean walking out the door. Banks isn’t walking anywhere yet. A separate murder-in-aid-of-racketeering charge was severed from this trial by Judge Fitzgerald and remains pending — meaning Banks stays in federal custody ahead of a second trial next month covering racketeering murder and firearms counts. If convicted on those remaining charges, he still faces the possibility of life in federal prison.
Banks won a Grammy in 2024 for “All My Life,” featuring J. Cole — a reminder that even mid-legal battle, his career never fully paused.
