Lil Durk, the Grammy Award-winning rapper, has recently been arrested on a murder-for-hire charge, as reported by CBS News, a partner of the BBC in the U.S. According to police records reviewed by U.S. media, Durk Devontay Banks—better known as Lil Durk—was taken into custody in Broward County, Florida, on Thursday night and is currently being held without bail.
This arrest follows closely on the heels of charges filed against five individuals associated with Banks’ hip-hop collective, Only The Family (OTF), in connection to a 2022 shooting that resulted in the death of the cousin of rival rapper Quando Rondo.
The 33-year-old Chicago native has enjoyed significant success in the music industry with six albums landing in the top five of the U.S. Billboard charts since 2019, and notable collaborations with major artists such as Drake and J. Cole. He won the Grammy for Best Melodic Rap Performance in February for his song “All My Life,” featuring J. Cole.
Lil Durk established OTF in 2010, playing a prominent role in the drill rap scene in Chicago. Reports indicate that the five men charged recently organized the 2022 shooting in Los Angeles as direct retaliation for the 2020 killing of rapper King Von, who was affiliated with OTF.
Although a friend of Quando Rondo had previously been charged with King Von’s murder, those charges were later dismissed, and Rondo himself was neither arrested nor charged. The Chicago Sun-Times disclosed that the new indictment claims an unnamed co-conspirator promised “money and lucrative music opportunities with OTF” to incentivize individuals to participate in the assassination of Quando Rondo.
In 2022, some of those charged allegedly fired at a car carrying Quando Rondo, his sister, and his cousin, Saviay’a Robinson. While Rondo and his sister were unharmed, Robinson tragically lost her life.
In a separate matter, earlier this month, the mother of another Chicago rapper, FBG Duck, filed a lawsuit alleging that Lil Durk, OTF, and King Von were involved in Duck’s 2020 murder.
It’s worth noting that two years ago, charges against Lil Durk, including attempted murder, were dropped following a non-fatal shooting incident in Atlanta in 2019. The BBC has reached out to Lil Durk’s representatives for comment on his recent arrest.
