\n<\/p>\n
A federal jury has found Lil Durk not guilty of plotting to kill<\/a> Georgia rapper Quando Rondo. Durk had been in federal custody since 2024, when he was arrested and charged<\/a> with conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire, conspiracy to commit stalking, and stalking resulting in death.<\/p>\n Prosecutors had argued Durk worked with a cohort of five men tied to his Only the Family (OTF)<\/a> collective to orchestrate a hit on Bowman, born Tyquian Bowman, as revenge for the 2020 murder of Durk\u2019s friend King Von<\/a>. Timothy \u201cLul Timm\u201d Leeks, who prosecutors said was \u201can associate\u201d of Bowman\u2019s, was later charged<\/a> with killing Von. Those charges were eventually dropped<\/a>.<\/p>\n The federal government\u2019s case was mostly built on the testimony of Durk\u2019s associates, who were initially charged as co-defendants before pleading guilty. Prosecutors sought to use Durk\u2019s lyrics as evidence in the case, a controversial tactic many artists and First Amendment advocates have criticized<\/a>. Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald ruled to admit some lyrics referencing Durk\u2019s state of mind following the death of Von.<\/p>\n Kavon Grant, aka OTF Vonnie, alleged Durk had promised cash for the murder, while Durk\u2019s defense team argued Grant was actually the one behind the shooting and that the government\u2019s case was built on cooperators desperate to avoid life sentences. Kacey Hester, aka OTF Jam, said he was among those who trailed Bowman before ambushing him at a gas station, where they instead shot and killed Bowman\u2019s cousin Saviay\u2019a Tilal \u201cLul Pab\u201d Robinson. \u201cIt\u2019s Durk\u2019s fault,\u201d Hester testified. \u201cDurk put us in the situation.\u201d<\/p>\n Durk still faces additional racketeering charges, accusing him of operating his OTF label as a violent gang.<\/p>\n