Why Have Some Linked Diddy to Tupac and Biggie's Deaths? Untangling the Claims Surrounding His Alleged Role in the Unsolved Cases By Samantha Stutsman

For decades, Sean “Diddy” Combs has repeatedly denied any involvmement in the deaths of Tupac Shakur and Christopher “The Notorious B.I.G.” Wallace, also known as Biggie Smalls.

Tupac was fatally shot in a drive-by in Las Vegas on Sept. 7, 1996, and died six days later. Just six months after his death, Biggie was killed in a similar drive-by on March 9, 1997, in Los Angeles.

The backdrop for both tragedies was a rap landscape defined by intense rivalries, fractured friendships and the notorious East Coast–West Coast feud. Diddy — as Biggie’s close friend, producer and head of Bad Boy Records — was a leading figure on the East Coast side of the divide.

Over the years, Diddy’s name has repeatedly been pulled into the narrative surrounding both deaths. Netflix’s docuseries Sean Combs: The Reckoning, which premiered on Dec. 2, revisits his connections to Tupac and Biggie, featuring several individuals who allege he may have played a role in their deaths.

“I think that Sean had a lot to do with the death of Tupac, [and] he ushered Biggie to his death,” Bad Boy co-founder Kirk Burrowes claimed in the doc.

What are the alleged links between Diddy and the deaths of Tupac and Biggie? Here’s everything to know about his relationship with the two legendary rappers.

What is the alleged link between Diddy and Tupac’s death? 

Musically, Diddy and Tupac ran in similar circles. However, their relationship soured after the events of Nov. 30, 1994.

That night, Tupac was robbed and shot five times in the lobby of Quad Studios in New York City, where he was set to record a guest verse for Diddy’s artist Little Shawn, per Vice.

Although Tupac survived, the incident irreparably damaged his relationship with Diddy and Biggie. In a 1996 interview with Vibe Magazine, Tupac addressed whether Diddy was involved.

“I believe so. I do believe so. I have proof, things that I could say that would back up my claim. But this is not for the world to know about,” he claimed. “It’s between me and him. Only he knows. Every time he says it didn’t happen — that’s the only thing that makes this become an issue for anyone.”

The Quad Studios shooting case remains unsolved.

Nearly two years later, Tupac was fatally shot in a drive-by in Las Vegas on Sept. 7, 1996, and died six days later at age 25. His murder remained unsolved for decades, fueling speculation and conspiracy theories in the hip-hop world.

In September 2023, the case shifted when Duane “Keefe D” Davis was arrested and charged with one count of murder with a gang enhancement. Prosecutors allege Davis acted as the point man in the murder.

Months later, a bombshell court filing dated July 18, 2024, revealed a previously undisclosed 2009 police interview in which Davis not only allegedly detailed his role in Tupac’s killing but repeatedly referenced Diddy and alleged he was the person who ordered the shooting.

Davis claimed Diddy was enraged by Tupac’s relentless taunts. A DEA and U.S. Department of Justice report also cited a 2008 interview in which Davis alleged that Diddy said he “needed to get rid of [Marion ‘Suge’] Knight and Shakur” and offered Davis $1 million to “handle the problem.”

Combs has repeatedly denied any involvement. The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department told PEOPLE in July 2024 that “Sean Combs has never been considered a suspect in the Tupac Shakur homicide investigation.”

Diddy has never been charged in connection with the death. Davis, who has pleaded not guilty to murder, remains in custody awaiting trial, which has been delayed until Feb. 9, 2026, per ABC News.

What is the alleged link between Diddy and Biggie’s death? 

Following Tupac’s death, Diddy and his East Coast crew were allegedly warned not to set foot on the West Coast. Despite the threats, Diddy pressed on, determined to promote Biggie’s new album.

“Biggie didn’t want to go, but Sean talked him into doing all those things,” Burrowes alleged in Sean Combs: The Reckoning.

Diddy and Biggie attended the Soul Train Music Awards on March 7, 1997, where they were met with boos from the audience. The appearance was meant to be their only public event before Biggie departed for a London press tour. However, Burrowes claimed in Sean Combs: The Reckoning that Diddy canceled the trip.

“All of it because Sean wanted to do a party on enemy turf,” he said. In the early hours of March 9, Biggie left the party and was killed in a drive-by shooting.

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Later in the Netflix docuseries, former L.A. Police Department detective Greg Kading also suggested that he thought that Diddy was unhelpful in the investigation of Biggie’s murder.

“Sean clearly didn’t do all that he could have done to help out in the investigation. In fact, he was a hindrance in the investigation,” he claimed. “Puffy was kind of stonewalling people from talking, because he knows, if you make inroads on Biggie’s murder, you’re gonna make inroads on Tupac’s murder and that potentially can lead right back to him.”

The person who shot Biggie was a Black male in a blue tuxedo with a bowtie, but no one has ever been arrested or charged for the rapper’s killing, per Rolling Stone.

What has Diddy said about his alleged involvement in their deaths? 

Diddy has repeatedly denied any involvement in the deaths of Tupac and Biggie.

When he was asked directly about rumors that he put a hit out on Tupac during an April 2016 appearance on The Breakfast Club, Diddy dismissed them, saying, “We don’t talk about things that are nonsense, We don’t even entertain nonsense. So we’re not even going to go there, with all due respect.”

A year later, Diddy appeared on Today, where he reflected on Tupac’s death and how it marked a turning point in his life and career.

“When Tupac was shot and killed, it really resonated that things are really dangerous,” he said. “But that made us want to promote peace more. It made us want to go to L.A. and go to different places to tell people, ‘This is the most senseless, tragic thing to ever happen in music and our culture. It needs to stop. We need to get back to the love.’ ”

When Diddy appeared on The Wendy Williams Show in June 2017, he acknowledged that he felt “some sort of responsibility” for Biggie’s death, claiming that Biggie canceled the trip to London instead.

“He’s my artist,” he said. “He was supposed to go to London that night and I let him talk me into not going to London and staying in L.A. That’s something that really bothered me, throughout my life. That’s one of those things that I regret, not making sure that he went to London.”

Has Diddy been charged with Tupac and Biggie’s deaths?

Diddy has never been charged in connection with either Tupac’s or Biggie’s deaths. Authorities in both cases have repeatedly stated that he has not been considered a suspect.

In September 2023, Davis was arrested and charged in connection with Tupac’s death. Meanwhile, no one has ever been arrested for Biggie’s murder.

However, Diddy is currently in prison, serving a sentence of 50 months after being convicted on two prostitution-related charges in July 2025 and being acquitted of all other charges.