Ex-Cop Suspected in Rapper's Slaying

Examining Involvement of Former LAPD Officer in Death of Notorious B.I.G. Notorious B.I.G., who won rap artist and rap single of the year, clutches his awards at the podium during the annual Billboard Music Awards in New York, Wednesday evening, Dec. 6, 1995. A former L.A. police officer is one of the suspects in his murder.

The Associated Press

L O S  A N G E L E S, Dec. 9 — A former city police officer already behind bars for bank robbery is one of the suspects in the 1997 shooting death of rap star Notorious B.I.G., the Los Angeles Times reported today.

Investigators are reportedly examining whether former Officer David Mack conspired with Death Row Records founder Suge Knight to arrange the contract killing of the 24-year-old rapper whose real name was Christopher Wallace. Wallace was gunned down on March 9, 1997, after leaving a music industry party at the Peterson Automotive Museum.

No one has been charged in the shooting, which some blamed on a turf battle between Death Row and a rival rap label in New York City. Another theory behind the 360-pound rapper's death is that he was killed over a feud with gang members who claimed he owed them money for providing security.

Mack is under suspicion for allegedly hiring longtime friend Amir Muhammad to attack Wallace, the Times reported, citing confidential police documents and sources that include a former detective assigned to the case. A witness placed Mack at the scene of the slaying, and another man who was in the same vehicle as Wallace picked Mack out of a photo lineup of six men, according to police documents.

Information Leads to 11 Convictions Mack is serving a 14-year prison term for the 1997 bank robbery. Police have been unable to locate Muhammad. Mack's attorney, Donald M. Re, said any link between his client and Wallace's killing "sounds absolutely ridiculous." Knight attorney Robin Yanes called the theory old and said: "Suge doesn't know ."

Detectives have previously identified Knight as a suspect, alleging that he may have ordered Wallace's killing while he was in jail on a parole violation. He currently is serving a nine-year prison sentence stemming from a 1992 attack on two rappers in a recording studio.

Mack is also a former partner of Officer Rafael Perez, who has been at the center of a growing corruption probe of the Los Angeles Police Department. He is cooperating with prosecutors by giving them details of setups and falsified police reports in exchange for a lighter sentence on his conviction for stealing cocaine.

Perez's information has resulted in 11 convictions being overturned and more than a dozen officers have been suspended.

Copyright 1999 The Associated Press.