Lil Durk Implicated In Killing Of Chicago Gangster, Denied Bond In Murder-For-Hire Case

Lil Durk has been linked to the killing of an alleged Chicago gang leader, shortly after being charged with murder-for-hire over a separate slaying in Los Angeles.

Newly unsealed court documents claim the rapper (real name Durk Banks) funded the January 2022 shooting death of Stephon Mack, the alleged leader of the Smashville faction of the Gangster Disciples.

The killing is believed to have been payback for the murder of Durk’s brother Dontay “DThang” Banks, who was shot to death outside a nightclub in Harvey, Illinois in 2021.

“Lil Durk was and still is offering money for people to kill those responsible for his brother’s murder, and more specifically, offering to pay money for any Gangster Disciple that is killed,” a federal agent wrote in the filing, which was submitted in April 2023 but unsealed on Wednesday (December 11).

Durk has not been charged in connection with Mack’s murder, although police sources told the Chicago Tribune that an investigation is still ongoing.

Two men, Anthony Montgomery-Wilson and Preston Powell, were charged earlier this year with conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire in Mack’s killing.

Investigators allegedly discovered a two-person text message conversation on Montgomery-Wilson’s phone in which one person asked: “Did durk gave (sic) u that money.”

The unsealed documents were used by prosecutors during Lil Durk’s detention hearing in his murder-for-hire case on Thursday (December 12) as evidence that he should remain jailed until trial.

The judge sided with the prosecution and denied the rapper’s request for bond. His trial is set to begin on January 7.

During the hearing, prosucutors referenced “other murders” allegedly orchestrated by Durk, saying: “Evidence collected in this case also shows [Durk] has allegedly placed monetary bounties to solicit other murders, including a family member of a witness.

“[His] modus operandi is clear: he will use his power, his money, his influence, and any pretrial release to endanger anyone who he perceives as a threat, including witnesses in this case.”

Durk’s attorneys, meanwhile, had offered to put up his two homes in Georgia, worth a combined $2.3 million, as well as $1 million in cash from his label Sony Music, to secure a bond.

“We were obviously disappointed, but will continue to fight on,” Durk’s lawyer Jonathan Brayman said after the hearing. “Mr. Banks remains confident and optimistic about the future. He deeply appreciates the outpouring of love and support he has felt since his arrest.”

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Lil Durk was arrested along with five other men in October for allegedly masterminding an attempt on fellow rapper Quando Rondo‘s life in August 2022.

Rondo survived the shooting, which occured at a gas station in L.A., but his cousin Saviay’a “Lul Pab” Robinson, who was with him at the time, was killed.

Authorities believe the hit was to avenge the death of Durk’s close friend and collaborator King Von, who was killed during a scuffle with Rondo and his crew in Atlanta two years earlier.

Prosecutors claim Durk placed a bounty on Rondo’s head and lent money and resources to members of his OTF (Only the Family) crew to carry out the shooting.

Durk has pleaded not guilty to federal murder-for-hire and weapons charges. If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of life in prison.