The
FBI released files this week on the murder of rapper Tupac Shakur in 1996,
revealing that the Jewish Defense League (JDL) was suspected of “extorting money
from various rap-music stars via death threats, including Shakur and another
performer, Eazy-E.
“The scheme involves [name redacted] and other
subjects making telephonic death threats to the rap star,” the files state.
“Subjects then intercede by contacting the victim and offering protection for a
fee. The victim and their family are taken to a ‘safe haven,’ usually a
private estate, and are protected by gun-toting body guards associated with the
Jewish Defense League.”
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After the victims were brought to the “safe
havens,” the JDL would allegedly “convince the victim they have worked a ‘deal’
out... and the threats cease. The victim then pays the subjects for the
protection services rendered.”
An unidentified source identified Eazy-E
as a target of the JDL’s extortion before he died from AIDS. Another source from
within the JDL “had also reportedly targeted Tupac Shakur prior to his murder in
Las Vegas,” the files state.