Lil Durk’s father is publicly challenging the government’s case against his son as the Chicago rapper’s federal trial moves closer to jury deliberations in Los Angeles. The Lil Durk trial has included testimony from multiple people once closely connected to the rapper, but Dontay Banks Sr., also known as Abdul Haqq and Big Durk, says he believes the accounts presented to jurors do not line up. During a September 7 livestream with N3on, Banks questioned both the strength of the evidence and the consistency of the witnesses.
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“The fact that these people, these witnesses, and this evidence is so weak, you know? So weak. … People ain’t focusing on that. Why is the government doing it?” Durk’s father said when asked which part of the case he believes isn’t getting enough attention.Banks went even further while explaining why he hopes jurors will scrutinize the testimony closely.
“When you listen to the witnesses, ain’t nobody’s story the same,” he added before illustrating his point with a hypothetical scenario involving a can on a table. “If me and you sitting here, we see this can on the table, me and you can testify that can was on the table. The can is white and gray. But you get in there and say, ‘I ain’t see a can on there’? It’s the only thing on the table! So, it’s just one of those things right here. Come on, now. Ain’t nobody’s story consistent.”
Big Durk’s criticism comes from someone who has spent years navigating the federal criminal justice system himself. According to federal court records from the Northern District of Illinois, Banks was convicted in December 1993 on 24 narcotics-related counts connected to a cocaine and crack cocaine conspiracy that operated in Chicago between 1991 and 1993. Court records identified Banks as the primary organizer of the operation.
The same federal court records show that Banks received a life sentence on July 14, 1994. His punishment was later reduced to 360 months in December 2014 under an amendment to the federal sentencing guidelines. A later federal court ruling confirmed both the original life sentence and that reduction. Banks’ official biography says he ultimately spent 26 years incarcerated before returning to society in 2019.
Now, his son is facing the possibility of spending the rest of his own life in federal prison.
Lil Durk has pleaded not guilty in the trial, which centers on prosecutors’ allegation that he orchestrated a revenge plot targeting rapper Tyquian “Quando Rondo” Bowman. Prosecutors say the alleged plan grew out of the November 2020 killing of Durk’s close friend and fellow rapper Dayvon “King Von” Bennett.
The U.S. Justice Department alleges that several OTF members and associates tracked Bowman in Los Angeles on August 19, 2022, before gunmen opened fire near the Beverly Center. Bowman survived, but his cousin, Saviay’a Robinson, was killed. Prosecutors allege Durk ordered the attack and that money connected to Durk and OTF was used for flights, lodging, and other expenses associated with the alleged operation. Durk has denied participating in or ordering the plot.
The current case includes five federal counts. According to The New York Times, the charges include stalking and allegations tied to a murder for hire conspiracy resulting in Robinson’s death. Durk is being tried alongside Deandre “DeDe” Wilson and David “Browneyez” Lindsey. If convicted, Durk could face life in federal prison.
Central to the prosecution’s case are three cooperating witnesses who were once within Durk’s orbit.
Kacey Hester, known as OTF Jam, was the first major cooperator to testify. According to the Los Angeles Times, Hester admitted participating in the shooting and told jurors that Durk was responsible for putting the group in the situation that led to the attack. Hester also testified that Durk had previously made threats toward Quando Rondo.
Keith “Flacka” Jones also took the stand for the government. According to The New York Times, Jones testified that Durk offered $1 million for Bowman’s killing and that the alleged offer motivated him to travel to California. Jones acknowledged participating in the shooting, but he also testified that Durk was not physically present during the attack and that he never received the alleged million-dollar payment.
Former Durk assistant Kavon “Vonnie” Grant became another key government witness. According to Los Angeles Magazine, Grant admitted participating in Robinson’s shooting and, when asked why he took part, testified, “Durk told us to.” Grant had worked closely with Durk and had access to his financial information, an issue the defense has used to argue that Grant could handle transactions without Durk personally directing them.
Durk’s attorneys have aggressively challenged the credibility and motives of the cooperating witnesses throughout the Lil Durk trial. His defense has also argued that merely knowing people accused of committing crimes does not establish that he joined their alleged conspiracy. In court documents, his attorneys stated, “Mere knowledge that others are planning to commit, are committing, or have committed a crime does not make Mr. Banks guilty of those crimes.”
That dispute is now at the heart of the case. Prosecutors are asking jurors to view the testimony, financial records and other evidence as pieces of one coordinated revenge plot, while the defense maintains that cooperating witnesses are shifting responsibility toward Durk and that the government has not proven he ordered the killing.
As of September 8, closing arguments are scheduled in Los Angeles before the case moves to jury deliberations. For Big Durk, who once walked into federal court and received a life sentence of his own, the focus is now on whether jurors believe the witnesses who say his son was the person giving the orders.
