Jury finds Grammy-winning rapper Lil Durk not guilty in murder-for-hire case

Grammy winner Durk Banks and two others were charged with stalking and killing a man in an ambush near a Los Angeles shopping center.

Jurors on Friday found Grammy-winning rapper Lil Durk not guilty on all charges in a murder-for-hire trial in connection with a deadly shooting near a Los Angeles shopping center.

The federal grand jury began deliberations Wednesday and reached a verdict on Friday afternoon, according to the Department of Justice. An energetic crowd of fans and content creators gathered outside the downtown Los Angeles courthouse after news of a verdict was in.

Lil Durk, whose real name is Durk Banks, and two others were charged with stalking and killing a man in an ambush near the Beverly Center four years ago. Banks was accused of setting in motion a plan to kill Tyquian Bowman, a rival Atlanta rapper known as Quando Rondo.

Prosecutors contended Banks paid for a hit team to travel from Chicago to Los Angeles in August 2022 with the intention of killing Bowman, but the plan went awry when their shots mistakenly killed 24-year-old Saviay'a Robinson, Bowman's cousin, who was seated in a black Escalade with the intended victim. Prosecutors said gunmen fired at least 18 rounds at Bowman's vehicle outside the high-traffic shopping area.

Banks, who won a Best Melodic Rap Performance Grammy in 2024 for the hit "All My Life," was accused of ordering, bankrolling and planning the intended murder as revenge after an associate of Bowman's killed a close friend of Banks', Dayvon "King Von" Bennett, in 2020 at an Atlanta nightclub, federal prosecutors said.

Banks' attorneys, however, maintained that the 33-year-old Chicago rapper wasn't involved in the planned hit. Instead, they told the jury, it was Banks' former personal assistant Kavon Grant — who subsequently switched sides and testified for the government — who set up the intended killing of Bowman to impress his boss.

The defendants pleaded not guilty to charges of conspiracy, stalking of Bowman using a dangerous weapon, stalking of Robinson resulting in death, and two counts involving murder-for-hire allegations.

His two alleged co-conspirators, Deandre Wilson and David Lindsey — both affiliates of the hip hop collective Banks founded called Only the Family, known as OTF — were convicted of conspiracy to commit stalking and stalking. They were also acquitted of the murder-for-hire charges.

Drew Findling, Bank's attorney, spoke outside the courthouse after his client's acquittal, celebrating the verdict as a historic victory.

“Twenty-two months ago, Durk and I made an agreement that we would make history with the greatest verdict in this country, and it happened today. Durk is not guilty of all charges," Findling said, later adding, "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."

Banks has been held in federal custody in Los Angeles since his arrest in 2024. According to his legal team, Durk will remain in custody. He faces separate federal charges in a racketeering case that's expected to go to court on Oct. 5.

First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli released the following statement Friday evening:

“Today, the jury delivered just to the family of Saviay’a Robinson, finding defendants Deandre Wilson and David Lindsey guilty of stalking resulting in Mr. Robinson’s death.

“While we are disappointed with the jury’s decision regarding Durk Banks, a.k.a. ‘Lil Durk,’ we look forward to presenting our evidence at his second trial, scheduled for October 5, when he will face racketeering murder and firearms charges.”

Grant and two other members of Banks' inner circle reached plea deals and testified for the government about Banks' alleged involvement in the scheme during the trial in Los Angeles federal court. Banks declined to testify in his own defense and Bowman was not called to the stand.

This story originally appeared on NBCLosAngeles.com.