A cooperating witness known as OTF Vonnie has taken the stand in Lil Durk’s federal murder trial in Los Angeles, delivering testimony that attorney Moe Gangat describes as more dramatic than anything Hollywood could produce.
Vonnie, whose full name is Vonnie K. Von Grant, is a cousin figure to the late King Von and served as Lil Durk’s day-to-day assistant. His account covers two separate alleged plots, one in Georgia targeting Quando Rondo and one in Los Angeles that ended in the murder of Lil Pab.
Gangat, who has been present in the courtroom since the first day of trial, said the testimony was unlike anything he had witnessed.
“We could take 10 of the greatest Hollywood script writers in the history of Hollywood,” he said, “and they could not have written a script that delivers the kind of drama and intensity that the real-world story of this trial” produced.
According to Vonnie’s testimony, the Georgia incident began at a party house belonging to a member of a group called the Trigger Happy Family. Word spread that Quando Rondo was in town for a show, and Vonnie claimed Durk pulled him aside privately and said something to the effect of needing to set it up.
When a prosecutor asked what that meant, Vonnie said it meant arranging to go and kill Quando. Vonnie testified that he sourced stolen cars and guns, loaded shooters into a trailer, and drove to the venue. A shootout occurred at a gas station in a small Georgia town.
Quando was not hit, but one person in his entourage was shot in the hand. Gangat noted that the community had been shaken by the violence for years before Vonnie’s testimony finally explained what happened.
The Los Angeles portion of the testimony centered on the August 2022 murder of Lil Pab near the Beverly Center. Vonnie testified that on a private jet returning from Miami, Durk told him to get some cars. From there, Vonnie said, the plot unfolded.
He sourced a stolen white Infiniti and had his own rented BMW M5. He arranged a sprinter van, picked up shooters who had flown in from Chicago, distributed guns and ski masks, and conducted reconnaissance at Quando’s hotel.
Vonnie testified that he had not expected to be personally involved in the shooting itself, but that a co-defendant relayed an order that he had to stay.
He then did recon at the hotel, briefed the crew on exits and layout, and was present as the group followed Quando’s entourage from the hotel to a dispensary, then to a Bape store, and finally to the gas station where the shooting took place.
After the murder, the group drove in Vonnie’s BMW to an In-N-Out Burger before arranging flights back to Chicago through San Diego.
Gangat highlighted several details that helped investigators crack the case. A distinctive “rags to riches” patch on one shooter’s pants was traced to a small Chicago brand sold at only two boutiques in the country, which helped link the crime to Chicago.
A GPS tracker in Vonnie’s BMW documented his movements throughout. Surveillance footage was shared with Chicago detectives who identified members of the crew.
One of the key cooperators, identified as Jam, was arrested on a parole violation after a gun was found in a car during a traffic stop.
Gangat believes investigators were likely already pressing Jam with evidence from the Los Angeles case before he began cooperating, though the exact sequence remains unclear from testimony.
What is clear is that Jam eventually passed a note to law enforcement indicating he had knowledge of multiple murders and wanted to talk.
The government has completed its direct examination of Vonnie. Cross-examination has not yet begun, and Gangat says the full picture of how the federal investigation was built will only become clearer as more testimony comes in.
