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New details about the death and aftermath of legendary rapper Tupac Shakur have resurfaced in a striking account shared by former Death Row Records CEO Marion "Suge" Knight. Speaking to People from California's Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility, Knight claimed that some of Shakur's closest friends and family smoked the rapper's cremated ashes in an intimate and symbolic ritual following his death.
Tupac was shot on the night of September 7, 1996, after attending a Mike Tyson fight in Las Vegas. He was a passenger in a black BMW driven by Knight when a Cadillac pulled up beside them and opened fire. Shakur was hit four times, including twice in the chest. Knight, grazed by a bullet, attempted to drive them to safety despite two blown-out tires.
"I got out and tried to tell the officers what happened while I was bleeding everywhere," Knight said. "I then was getting Tupac out the car... take the seat belt off him." The two were rushed to the University Medical Center of Southern Nevada. While Knight was treated and discharged, Shakur underwent two emergency surgeries, including the removal of a lung. He was pronounced dead on September 13, 1996, at 4:03 p.m., aged 25.
According to People, Knight revealed that Tupac's mother, Afeni Shakur, insisted on an immediate cremation with no funeral. Knight said he paid $1 million in cash to fulfill her request. That same night, a small group gathered in his honor. "A bag with his ashes was passed around. His homies rolled him up. They smoked him," Knight claimed.
Due to being on probation at the time, Knight said he abstained from participating. "I told his mother, 'Moms, I'd love to, but if I hit that, I'll get in trouble,'" he said. "I was probably the only one who didn't hit him."
"You gotta understand, that's what made sense," Knight added. "It was symbolic. It's like... you keep part of him."
