Chicago Rapper Lil Durk Charged in Superseding Indictment Alleging Murder for Hire Plot to Kill Rival Near Beverly Center Mall in 2022

LOS ANGELES - A Grammy Award-winning Chicago rapper has been charged in a superseding federal grand jury indictment alleging he conspired with others to murder a rival rapper, resulting in the shooting death of the rival's relative that occurred at a gas station near the Beverly Center shopping mall in Los Angeles in August 2022, the Justice Department announced today.

Durk Banks, 32, a.k.a. "Lil Durk," "Blood," and "Mustafa Abdul Malak," of Chicago, is charged with one count of conspiracy, one count of use of interstate facilities to commit murder-for-hire resulting in death, and one count of using, carrying, and discharging firearms and a machine gun and possession of such firearms in furtherance of a crime of violence resulting in death.

The indictment adds two felony charges against Banks, who previously was charged via criminal complaint in this case.

The four-count superseding indictment, returned late Thursday, adds Banks as the lead defendant to a previous indictment returned October 17 and charging the following defendants in connection with the August 2022 murder:

• Kavon London Grant, 28, a.k.a. "Cuz" and "Vonnie," of Atlanta;
• Deandre Dontrell Wilson, 33, a.k.a. "DeDe," of Chicago;
• Keith Jones, 33, a.k.a. "Flacka," of Gary, Indiana;
• David Brian Lindsey, 33, a.k.a. "Browneyez," of Addison, Illinois; and
• Asa Houston, 36, a.k.a. "Boogie," of Chicago.

Banks was arrested on October 17 near Miami International Airport after law enforcement learned that Banks had been booked on multiple international flights. A federal magistrate judge in Miami has ordered him jailed without bond until he is transferred to Los Angeles for arraignment.

All six defendants - none of whom has yet entered a plea to the charges - are expected to be arraigned in United States District Court in downtown Los Angeles in the coming weeks.

According to the superseding indictment, in 2010, Banks formed an organization called Only the Family (OTF), which, among other things, produced and sold hip hop music from artists primarily from the Chicago area. OTF also acted as an association-in-fact of individuals who engaged in violence, including murder and assault, at Banks' direction and to maintain their status in OTF.

Banks feuded with a victim, identified in court documents as "T.B." The feud stemmed from a November 6, 2020, murder in which an associate of T.B. shot and killed an OTF rapper named Dayvon Bennett, a.k.a. "King Von." Bennett and Banks were close friends.

In response to Bennett's murder, Banks allegedly put a bounty on T.B.'s life.

On August 19, 2022, several OTF members and associates used two vehicles and worked in tandem to track, stalk, and attempt to murder T.B. for hours, culminating in a shooting at a gasoline station located near the Beverly Center shopping mall. The co-conspirators used multiple guns, including a machine gun, and fired at least 18 rounds at T.B.'s vehicle, striking and killing a victim identified in court documents as "S.R.," who was T.B.'s family member who had been traveling with T.B.

Banks allegedly ordered T.B.'s murder and the hitmen used money from Banks and OTF-related finances to carry out the hit. Bank and flight records show that an OTF member and close associate of Banks coordinated and paid for five co-conspirators to travel from Chicago to California on the day before the murder. Around the time the one-way flights were purchased, Banks told the OTF associate booking the flights, "Don't book no flights under no names involved wit [sic] me."

The same day the hitmen traveled from Chicago to California, Banks also traveled to California in a private jet with another conspirator, Kavon London Grant, 28, a.k.a. "Cuz" and "Vonnie." Later that day, Grant allegedly purchased ski masks for the shooters to use to commit the murder and paid - using a credit card in Banks' name - for the other co-conspirators' hotel room.

The other five defendants are in federal custody in Illinois after their initial court appearances in Chicago. They remain charged with one count of conspiracy, one count of use of interstate facilities to commit murder-for-hire resulting in death, and one count of using, carrying and discharging firearms and a machine gun and possession of such firearms in furtherance of a crime of violence resulting in death. Jones faces an additional count of possession of a machine gun.

An indictment contains allegations that a defendant has committed a crime. Every defendant is presumed to be innocent until and unless proven guilty in court.

If convicted, all the defendants would face a statutory maximum sentence of life in federal prison.

The FBI and the Los Angeles Police Department are investigating this matter.

Assistant United States Attorneys Ian V. Yanniello of the Terrorism and Export Crimes Section, Daniel H. Weiner of the International Narcotics, Money Laundering, and Racketeering Section, and Gregory W. Staples of the Orange County Office are prosecuting this case.

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