Lil Durk’s legal fight for his freedom has officially begun. Yesterday (November 14), the “All My Life” rapper was arraigned in Los Angeles federal court for the murder-for-hire plot of fellow rapper Quando Rondo and firearms charges he was hit with over the past several weeks.
According to USA Today, Lil Durk (real name Durk Davontay Banks) formally entered a plea of not guilty to the charges against him, which include one count of conspiracy, one count of using 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.”
After news of Durk’s arrest was shared across online platforms, Rondo took to Instagram with a message (viewable here), seemingly for Durk. “We didn’t get into this music industry to make it just to stay caught up in this street sh*t,” he wrote. “We all have families and communities counting on us. It’s time to leave all that behind. We’ve already lost so much, and it’s heavy on my heart to forgive anyone I had issues with in the past. It’s all love from me. Praying for everyone.”
Although Rondo survived the incident, his cousin Lul Pab was tragically killed. Prosecutors are set to argue that the murder-for-hit plot was supposedly in retaliation for Quando Rondo’s friend and entourage member Lul Tim killing Lil Durk’s friend and fellow rapper King Von in self-defense back in 2020.
Durk’s trial has reportedly been scheduled for January 7, 2025. Although Durk maintains his innocence, if the Grammy Award winner is convicted of these charges, he could face up to life in prison.