Such was the case with Trevon “Tray” Lane, who was in L.A. County Jail awaiting trial on a charge
of evading police. Tim Brennan and I paid him a visit in early July. Tray was uniquely qualified to tell us
something we didn’t already know, given his involvement in an incident that had led up to the shooting of
Tupac Shakur in Las Vegas on September 7, 1996.
Two months prior to that night, Tray, his friend Kevin “K.W.” Woods, and two other Bloods had
been shopping at a Foot Locker oudet in the Lakewood Mall, a sprawling shopping complex between
Compton and Long Beach that was a favorite spot for gangsters to strut their stuff. That evening, Tray was
sporting a large diamond-cut medallion stamped with the Death Row logo, a prized piece of bling
bestowed on favored associates by Suge Knight. As the foursome left the mall and made their way through
the parking lot, they were jumped by upward of eight Southside Crips, including Maurice “Lil Mo”
Combs, Denvonta “Dirt” Lee, and Orlando “Baby Lane” Anderson.
Baby Lane would subsequendy appear on the list of likely suspects Brennan had supplied to
detectives in the initial Biggie Smalls investigation. Tall and rangy with an ice-cold stare, Baby Lane had
been arrested for murder in 1996 and on a robbery charge the following year. But his rap sheet paled in
comparison with the crimes he was suspected of committing but that could not be proved. They included
involvement in a number of drive-by shootings and other gang-related assaults. He was the quintessential
menace to society.
But Anderson had simple larceny on his mind that afternoon in the parking lot of the Lakewood Mall.
Specifically, he was after the gaudy gold-and-diamond Death Row necklace that Tray was wearing. Later
stories circulated that Puffy had offered a $10,000 bounty to anyone who could bring him one of these
medallions. Compton police officer Reggie Wright, Jr., had heard rumors to that effect from the Southside
Crips and had passed the information along to investigators during the initial probe into Biggie’s death.
But it’s much more likely that Anderson simply wanted the pendant with its heavy chain for himself.
And he got it, ripping it off Tray’s neck and leaving the humiliated Pirus to plot their revenge.
They had their chance several weeks later when Tupac and Suge were in Las Vegas to see Mike
Tyson take on the WBA heavyweight champion, Bruce Seldon, in one of the more controversial boxing
matches in recent sports history. Tyson took out Seldon in the first round, knocking him down twice with
blows that the slow-motion replay footage later suggested had either missed the defending champ
completely or simply grazed him The fight was called after a little less than two minutes, with cries of
“Fix!” echoing through the MGM Grand Garden Arena.
But Tyson’s questionable punches weren’t the only ones thrown that night. Also in town for the fight
was a contingent of Crips, including Baby Lane. At close to nine o’clock, following the main event,
Anderson was making his way across the lobby of the MGM Grand Hotel. Tray, who had accompanied
Tupac and Suge to Las Vegas, spotted him across the crowded room, leaning over to whisper in Tupac’s
ear.
“That’s the dude,” he reportedly said, identifying Anderson as the Crip who had stolen Tray’s Death
Row medallion and the two moved quickly across the casino floor.
“You from the South?” Tupac asked Baby Lane before laying him out on the plush carpet with a
sucker punch. His posse, including Suge, piled on with kicks and blows to the face and torso in a vicious
assault that, clocking in at one minute and nine seconds, lasted nearly as long as the championship bout
they had just attended.