Chicago rapper Lil Durk arrested in Florida on murder-for-hire charges
Lil Durk tied to attempted murder of rapper Quando Rondo, who was allegedly connected to King Von's death
CHICAGO -- Chicago-born rapper Lil Durk appeared before a federal judge in Florida Friday morning.
Coming off his first Grammy win earlier this year, rapper Lil Durk was arrested Thursday, and is now facing charges in connection to a murder-for-hire plot.
The 32-year-old's name is Durk Banks. U.S. Marshals took him into custody on Thursday in Broward County, Florida, as he tried to flee the country.
Banks appeared in federal bond court Friday morning.
He faces federal charges that he paid for the attempted 2022 revenge killing of rapper Quando Rondo at a Los Angeles gas station, a shooting that resulted in the death of Rondo's cousin.
Durk, 32, is charged with conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire in the slaying of Saviay'a Robinson, 24, who was gunned down on Aug. 19, 2022, according to an FBI affidavit released Friday.
According to court documents, five members of Durk's Only the Family group, also known as "OTF," were indicted by a California grand jury this week on charges of conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire.
At least two more arrests may be forthcoming, according to court documents that have been filed.
FBI Agent Sarah Corcoran said in her affidavit that OTF members engage "in violence, including murder and assault, at the direction of Banks and to maintain their status in OTF."
Durk's representatives did not immediately respond to emails Friday seeking comment.
According to Corcoran's affidavit and other federal court records, the shooting stems from the November 2020 slaying of OTF rapper King Von, 26, at an Atlanta nightclub after Von and Rondo got into a fight. Records say a friend of Rondo's pulled a gun and shot Von several times, killing him. Von, whose real name was Dayvon Bennett, had two hit singles, Crazy Story and "Took Her to the O."
Authorities say Durk made it known that he would "pay a bounty" to anyone who killed Rondo, whose real name is Tyquian Bowman.
Almost two years later, a murder plot quickly came together, Corcoran wrote.
On Aug. 18, 2022, Durk's associates learned that Rondo was staying at a Los Angeles hotel. That day, Deandre Wilson, Keith Jones, David Lindsey, Asa Houston and a fifth unnamed suspect flew from Chicago to San Diego and then drove to Los Angeles using funds provided by Durk, Corcoran said.
That day, Durk allegedly texted an associate arranging the flights, "Don't book no flights under no names involved wit me." Corcoran said there is video evidence that Durk was staying at a house in the San Fernando Valley that day.
Once arriving in Los Angeles, the OTF members met Kayon Grant, who had flown there on a private jet. Grant, a top OTF associate, got the men hotel rooms, purchased them four ski masks and obtained two luxury sedans, court records say. Grant allegedly gave Jones, Lindsey and a third unnamed suspect guns, including one that had been converted into a fully automatic machine gun.
The next day, the group allegedly followed Rondo and Robinson as they drove a Cadillac Escalade to a Los Angeles marijuana dispensary, a West Hollywood clothing store and then a gas station across the street from the Beverly Center.
There, Houston parked his car behind the station so Jones, Lindsey and the unnamed defendant could ambush Rondo. They got out and opened fire, killing Robinson, who was standing outside the Escalade, but missing Rondo, the indictment and news stories about the shooting say.
The suspects then went to an In-N-Out hamburger stand where they discussed payment with Grant and then flew home to Chicago from San Diego, Corcoran and other documents say. Wilson allegedly later paid Jones and Lindsey an undisclosed amount.
Grant, Jones. Lindsey, Wilson and Houston were arrested Thursday in Chicago on conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire charges. No attorney information was immediately available for those men in court records.
After their arrests, Corcoran wrote, Durk booked two flights from South Florida airports - one to Dubai and one to Switzerland. He then booked a private flight to Italy, but was arrested in Miami before he could board that flight.
Durk and the other defendants are being held pending their transfer to Los Angeles.
Banks' arrest comes just weeks after he was named in a lawsuit, which alleges the rapper had a hand in the 2020 gang-related deadly shooting of Chicago rapper FBG Duck, born Carlton Weekly.
Duck was killed in the Gold Coast neighborhood by a group of masked men as he waited to enter a high-end store.
Six purported gang members were convicted of carrying out Weekly's murder.
Weekly's mother spoke with ABC7's Karen Jordan after filing the lawsuit.
"Not a day goes by that I don't think about him and the life that was taken from him." LaSheena Weekly, FBG Duck's mother, said.
Lil Durk and his team did not comment on that lawsuit.
The village of Broadview, Illinois withdrew its key to the city from Lil Durk Friday.
"While the American system of justice grants everyone the presumption of innocence until proven guilty in a court of law, in the Village of Broadview, the court of public opinion of residents has even higher moral and ethical standards of behavior. And our public partners must also reflect the same uncompromising standards demanded by our residents. Given the news that Durk "Lil Durk" Banks has been arrested in Florida and charged with murder for hire, the Village of Broadview is withdrawing our honorary 'key to the village' granted to Durk and is terminating our partnership agreement with his youth organization, Neighborhood Heroes Foundation. As mayor, protecting Broadview's interests and upholding the values of residents is job number one," Broadview Mayor Katrina Thompson said in a statement.
Lil Durk won a Grammy earlier this year for Best Melodic Rap Performance for his song "All My Life," which featured J. Cole. He has also been nominated three times and was a featured performer on Drake's "Laugh Now Cry Later."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
