Diddy issues mount as Tupac's family investigates alleged link to death, hires Alec Baldwin's 'Rust' lawyer
The family of the late rapper Tupac Shakur has hired a prominent New York lawyer to investigate alleged links between his death and Sean "Diddy" Combs, Fox News Digital has confirmed.
Alex Spiro, a 41-year-old, Harvard-trained attorney, helped "Rust" actor Alec Baldwin secure a legal victory in his involuntary manslaughter case. Baldwin was charged with manslaughter in 2021, after his on-set shooting led to the tragic death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. Shakur’s family has hired Spiro, who has a roster of Hollywood clients, to investigate whether Combs had any involvement with the late rapper’s death nearly 30 years ago.
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Shakur was fatally shot in a drive-by shooting on Sept. 7, 1996. The rapper was riding shotgun in Death Row Records co-founder Marion "Suge" Knight's black BMW when a white Cadillac pulled up alongside them while they were stopped at a traffic light. Knight was in the car with Shakur when they were attacked in Las Vegas.
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Industry legends Shakur and Notorious B.I.G., a Bad Boy artist, both died in drive-by shootings.
Biggie, whose real name was Christopher Wallace, died in the arms of one of Combs' bodyguards.
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The cases prompted speculation and conspiracy theories for more than a decade. Police in Las Vegas finally announced an indictment in Shakur's murder last year.
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Last September, Duane "Keffe D" Davis was indicted on the charge of open murder with use of a deadly weapon along with a gang enhancement, prosecutors revealed during a press conference. In 2018, Davis made media statements that "reinvigorated" the investigation, police said at the time.
In 2008, Combs denied a report by the Los Angeles Times that his associates were responsible for the 1994 robbery and shooting of Shakur at a New York recording studio, or that he had known about the attack in advance.
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"The story is a lie," the hip-hop mogul said in a statement at the time. "It is beyond ridiculous and completely false. Neither (the late rapper Notorious B.I.G.) nor I had any knowledge of any attack before, during or after it happened. . . . I am shocked that the Los Angeles Times would be so irresponsible as to publish such a baseless and completely untrue story."
The 1994 shooting triggered the celebrated feud between East and West Coast rappers that led to the killings of Shakur and B.I.G.
The news of Shakur’s family hiring New York attorney Spiro comes as Combs is faced with a slew of charges and is currently in jail.
On September 16, Combs was arrested and charged with racketeering conspiracy; sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion; and transportation to engage in prostitution. He faces a minimum of 15 years behind bars and a maximum sentence of life in prison if found guilty.
Fox News Digital's Lauryn Overhultz and Michael Ruiz contributed to this report.