The murder-for-hire trial of rapper Lil Durk ended with closing arguments on Tuesday (September 8) before the jury heads into deliberation.
The proceedings had a late start in the morning after a juror arrived slightly behind schedule, but moved forward as Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald explained all five counts that Durk and his co-defendants Deandre “OTF DeDe” Wilson and David “Browneyez” Lindsey are tried for.
Among the counts are conspiracy to commit stalking and use of interstate commerce facilities in a murder-for-hire plot, all tied to the August 2022 murder of Saviay'a “Lul Pab” Robinson. The group, including cooperating witnesses Kacey “OTF Jam” Hester, Kayvon “OTF Vonnie” Grant and Keith “Flacka” Jones, are alleged to have been ordered by Durk Banks to murder Georgia rapper Quando Rondo as payback for the November 2020 murder of King Von. The late artist was fatally shot in Atlanta by Timothy “Lul Timm” Leeks during a fight with Rondo. A fourth co-defendant, who was severed from the case, is Asa “Boogie” Houston.
Arguments got underway when Assistant U.S. Attorney Ian Yanniello alleged that the suspects “wanted revenge for a fallen gang member and OTF member King Von.” The remarks took several emotional turns, with the prosecutor exhibiting surveillance footage from the shooting, which occurred at a gas station adjacent from the Beverly Center, and body cam footage of Robinson dying.
Yanniello went on to say that Durk “had his shooters on speed dial,” harkening back to the Grammy winner allegedly rushing the group from Chicago to San Diego before their arrival to L.A. via sprinter. The rapper’s business partner, Jason Smith, booked flights for the men on the morning of August 18, the same day they’d allegedly stake out a hotel that Rondo and his group were allegedly staying in. On the following day was the murder.
Yanniello added that 25-year-old Robinson expected to have an ordinary visit in L.A., “unaware that the co-conspirators already set their plan in motion.”
“It was surveillance, it was stalking, and it was premeditated murder,” he continued.
The attorney claimed that Durk was “elated” at the news of Robinson’s death, referencing text messages that the rapper was sent about the incident, along with his close friend, OTF Boonie Moe, mocking the victim’s death during a jail call. According to Yanniello, Durk embraced Hester because he was a “stone-cold killer,” while Grant, formerly Durk’s assistant, had “no authority” over the group.
“Defendant Banks used his money, power and influence to stalk and kill his biggest opp, Quando Rondo,” the lawyer stressed, concluding that the case was about Robinson.
The defense team, with remarks divided between Brian Steel and Drew Findling, targeted Hester and Grant as co-conspirators in the crime, with Steel arguing that the men “knowingly” participated with the “intent” to kill. Steel also called Hester “untrustworthy” due to his crime spree background.
“He’s been incarcerated more in his lifespan than he’s been out. The man is not human,” Steel said.
The attorney went on to allege that a deal was offered to Hester by the FBI to implicate Durk before calling the cooperating witness a “serial killer.” Grant, Steel maintained, “is the most manipulative person,” and played an audio recording of Grant saying that he would become “emotional on the stand” and “make it sound good.”
In Findling’s argument, he said that an LAPD detective who spoke with Hester framed Durk as a “gangster with [a lot] of money.” The attorney also called out the government for allegedly cherry-picking evidence from Durk’s songs, interviews and social media messages. At times, the lawyer was animated in his remarks, at one point saying: “If Jam were Pinocchio, there would be holes through the back of this wall.”
Elsewhere, Findling accused witnesses of trying to “leverage” a better deal for themselves while attempting to “throw away the life of Durk Banks.” “He is not a prize in a carnival. He is a human being,” Findling concluded.
Deliberations will begin on Wednesday (September 9). If found guilty on all counts, Durk faces a potential life sentence.
