Chicago rapper Lil Durk charged with murder-for-hire conspiracy: court records

Chicago rapper and Englewood native Lil Durk, born Durk Banks, was arrested Thursday in Florida in connection with an alleged murder-for-hire plot, according to Broward County Sheriff’s Office records.

Banks, 32, was being held in the Broward County Jail as of Friday morning, records show, but the exact nature of the charges remained unclear. A representative for Lil Durk could not be reached Friday morning.

Banks was arrested the same day federal prosecutors in California announced charges against five other men, all with ties to Chicago gangs, in the attempted murder of Georgia rapper Quando Rondo, born Tyquian Terrel Bowman. That shooting, which took place at a Los Angeles gas station in August 2022 and was captured on surveillance video, claimed the life of Quando Rondo’s cousin, Saviay’a Robinson.

Charged in that indictment are: Kavon London Grant; Deandre Dontrell Wilson; Keith Jones; David Brian Lindsey; and Asa Houston.

The charges include conspiracy to commit murder on one’s own account, murder on one’s own account involving death and use of a machine gun in a crime of violence resulting in death. The most serious charge carries the death penalty if convicted.

The indictment alleges that all five have ties to “Only the Family,” also known as OTF, a hip-hop collective founded by Lil Durk, a mentor to King Von. Flights and rental cars were paid for with credit cards linked to OTF, according to prosecutors.

OTF was founded by Lil Durk more than a decade ago as Chicago’s drill rap scene was gaining international attention. Federal prosecutors say the group “primarily produced and sold hip hop music” from Chicago artists.

Chicago rapper FBG Duck was killed in a shooting spree on Oak Street in 2020, and his death led to the conviction of several men in a federal conspiracy trial last January. Earlier this month, FBG Duck’s mother filed a lawsuit claiming Lil Durk, OTF and King Von were involved in the shooting. The lawsuit alleges that OTF operates as a criminal enterprise.

Lil Durk has been among Chicago’s most successful rappers since the genre first took off. Also popularized by Chief Keef, G Herbo, and other artists, drill is marked by hyper-violent lyrics that often revolve around—and sometimes exacerbate—conflicts between gang factions.