The Las Vegas lawyer who represented Duane “Keffe D” Davis in the murder trial over the killing of rapper Tupac Shakur has been found dead at his home, days after filing an appeal against the conviction.

Michael Sanft, 55, was found inside his Las Vegas home on Friday morning, according to his friend, Michael Sloan, who spoke to the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

His cause and manner of death have not been established. Police said the death did not appear to be suspicious, the newspaper reported.

Sanft’s death comes a week after he filed a notice of appeal on October 30, challenging Davis’ conviction in the 1996 murder of Shakur.

Davis, 63, was sentenced to 40 years to life in prison on October 13 after a jury found him guilty of first-degree murder with the use of a deadly weapon.

Shakur was 25 when he was shot four times in a drive-by attack in Las Vegas in September 1996. He died in hospital six days later.

Prosecutors said Davis masterminded the killing. He had spoken about his involvement while seeking to avoid possible charges in 2008 and later claimed credit for the shooting in his 2019 memoir.

Davis’ nephew, Orlando Anderson, was identified as the gunman. Anderson had been involved in a fight with Shakur at the MGM Grand casino on the Las Vegas Strip hours before the shooting.

Anderson was killed in a shootout two years after Shakur’s death. Davis was the first person charged in connection with the rapper’s murder.

Sanft, a prominent Nevada defence lawyer, represented Davis without charge. He maintained that he and his legal team had done everything possible during the trial. “We had the best team possible in this case, from the motion practice work on this appeal to our investigator to our firm here at SOS Injury. We all did our part. I don’t see what I could’ve done differently,” Sanft said after the verdict.

He also recalled speaking with Davis after the jury returned its guilty verdict. “He had reminded me this is phase one. Because I was upset with the verdict, I was very disappointed in the jury. Mr. Davis was the one who said, ‘Don’t worry about it, man, this is the first phase,’ and I said, ‘I understand, I hate to lose,’” Sanft said.

Sanft is survived by his two children. (Arise News)