Tupac Shakur Is Still Alive? Conspiracy Theory That Rapper's Body Double Was Killed Instead Resurfaces
The Tupac Shakur conspiracy theory that the rapper is still alive today and that it was his body double who was killed instead has resurfaced on what would have been his 53rd birthday.
Shakur died in a hospital in September 1996 at the age of 25 days after being shot multiple times in a drive-by shooting in Las Vegas, Nevada.
But nearly three decades later, some fans and conspiracy theorists still believe that the hip-hop legend was not actually killed and instead is still walking around somewhere in the world right now.
One longstanding conspiracy theory claimed that Shakur switched with a body double and left Las Vegas before the shooting because he learned about a plot to assassinate him, according to the Mirror U.K.
Another claim came from Tupac's former bodyguard Michael Nice, who alleged that he helped the rapper fake his death and smuggle him to Cuba, NME reported.
"No one will ever convince me that Tupac is dead," one person tweeted Sunday. "That [motherf****r is] alive."
Another person insisted, "But Tupac really is still alive."
Read also: Tupac Murder Suspect Will Subpoena Suge Knight But Won't Take The Stand: 'Keefe Is A Loose Cannon'
Death Row Records founder Suge Knight, who was with Shakur on the night of the shooting, further fueled the conspiracy theory when he said in 2017 that he thought the rapper might still be alive.
"When 'Pac died, if he really did..." Knight said during an interview from prison for the documentary, "Who Shot Biggie and Tupac?"
Asked directly if he thought Shakur could be alive, Knight responded, "With Pac you never know," as quoted by the BBC.
Knight, who had been injured after being struck with a bullet fragment during the 1996 shooting, claimed that Shakur had been well enough to joke around with him before he was discharged from the hospital.
"I mean, when I left that hospital, me and 'Pac was laughing and joking," he claimed. "I don't see how someone can go from doing well to doing bad."
Over the years, people have also claimed to have spotted Shakur in various locations.
A video on YouTube purported to be "footage of 2Pac alive in 2020" showed a man with similar facial hair and a bald head talking on the phone. It has gained more than 230,000 views as of this writing.
Kim Kardashian also said in 2012 that she thought she had seen Shakur, according to the BBC.
Last year, a breakthrough was made in Shakur's case when the last living suspect in the drive-by shooting was arrested and charged with murder.
Duane "Keffe D" Davis is scheduled to go to trial on Nov. 4.
