NOTORIOUS B.I.G.'s killer was paid just $14,000 to shoot the rap legend on this date 25 years ago, the detective on the case has claimed.
The hit was allegedly orchestrated by Death Row Records boss Marion "Suge" Knight in response to the 1996 murder of his “money maker” Tupac Shakur and to maintain his hardcore gangster status, according to former LAPD detective Greg Kading.
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Death Row plot
And in a bizarre twist, one of Suge's baby mamas acted as the go-between for the infamous hit against Biggie - real name Christopher Wallace - before breaking rank and revealing the entire plot to cops, Kading said.
Kading, who led a major Federal task force probe into Biggie's murder, has revealed how his force’s investigations and Suge’s ex - codenamed "Theresa Swann" - detailed how Suge's paid enforcer Darnell “Poochie” Fouse pulled the trigger on March 9, 1997.
Swann revealed how the rap boss, who was behind bars at the time, ordered Compton gangster Poochie to murder Biggie, during a taped interview - which later she secured an immunity deal on, according to Kading.
Speaking on the 25th anniversary of Biggie's death, Kading told The Sun: “Suge indirectly told Poochie to kill Biggie through Swann.
Baby mama's killer deal
“Suge was in county jail and used Swann to make the solicitation and get at Biggie. According to her, the solicitation was $25,000 and she gave Poochie 14 grand, clearly she kept the remainder.
“We are relying on her statement, but it is backed up by other people within Death Row, who were all trying to get $25,000 in untraceable funds for something Suge needed done.
”Poochie was not a guy who was afraid to go out and pull the trigger.
“Money that was immediate was what they worked for. It may be hard to understand that sum for taking someone’s life, but to those guys it was a different mentality.”
East v West
Kading claims that while Poochie was looking to ingratiate himself with Knight, the record boss needed to strike back at East Coast gangsters for Tupac’s killing six months earlier in Las Vegas.
He added: “If he was going to let some rival crew come in and try to murder him without a reaction, what did that do for the reputation he’d spent years building?
“If Death Row didn’t retaliate Tupac’s murder then talk is that they are punk bitches for letting Bad Boy walk over them.
“Not only did Suge love Tupac, but he was his money maker.
Gang rules
“They robbed Suge on a personal and professional level
“The gang culture has no regard for the law. They had been shooting at each other, dealing drugs, stealing cars for their lives. The law was only a deterrent if someone was stupid enough to get caught.
“The consequences were also overshadowed by the benefit and reward in their minds.”
Kading’s force “strategically manipulated” Swann into an interview as she faced other criminal charges.
“She could either go to jail or tell us what she knew about the murder. We put her in a corner to make those hard decisions,” he said.
Body wire
Once Swann admitted her participation in the murder conspiracy, the FBI tried to use her to draw a confession from Knight.
Swann wore a body-wire during a meet with Suge, now out of prison, which ended in failure.
“Suge’s criminal instincts kept him from taking the bait when she raised Biggie’s death. The conversation was almost 12 years on from the murder and he would have suspected something with her all of a sudden bringing this stuff back up.
“Of course Suge had been around long enough in his life to know there are informants out there and you never know who they are.
Suge's silence
“The first thing he thought was, ‘What the f*** are you going to be asking these questions for?’
“Suge’s defense was, ‘I do not know what you are talking about.’
“The wire didn’t result in anything.”
Kading conducted Swann’s interviews, but noted them on police interview forms rather than audio tape. They remain secret as the murder case is active.
He says Swann’s description confirmed and expanded on evidence his team gathered in their probe.
Swann’s lawyer secured her prosecution immunity for attempting to get Knight’s admission deal and she has stayed silent ever since.
While her real name has been mentioned online and in books, Swann has always shied away from the limelight.
Unsolved case
Kading added: “Suge would have figured out she spoke, but the reality was that he was not going to kill or harm the mother of his child, especially if she is working with law enforcement.
“Suge is not an idiot, but a criminally sophisticated guy
"If you know someone is working with law enforcement and you go out and do something to them - who is their number one target now?"
Kading has no faith in the case ever being closed following Poochie’s death and the silence of Swann and Knight, who is serving 28 years for voluntary manslaughter after running down two men on a film set.
“The LAPD will never close it," he said.
"The sense is let lying dogs lie and that is not likely to change. What real benefit does the LAPD have in closing the case when all it's going to do is create a negative public response?"
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Kading is working on a new podcast and documentary about former rogue cop Christopher Dorner called Fury And Flames.
In response, LAPD told The Sun: "The case is still open and Robbery and Homicide Division will not be commenting."
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