Tupac Shakur is still alive hints Suge Knight, claims pair were 'laughing and joking' after shooting

Despite witnessing his brutal murder in a drive-by shooting in 1996, Suge Knight has revealed that he thinks legendary rapper Tupac Shakur could still be alive.

The 52-year-old record producer and co-founder of Death Row Records made the shocking claims in a discussion with Ice-T and Soledad O'Brien for the Fox Special Who shot Biggie and Tupac?

Knight fuelled the longstanding conspiracy theory that the California Love hitmaker may still be alive as he speaks about the questions surrounding Shakur's sudden deterioration in hospital in a clip obtained by TMZ.

He said: "When Pac died... if he really did, you know. I mean when I left that hospital, me and Pac was laughing and joking. So I don't see how someone can turn from doing well to doing bad."

Knight gave the icon's fans hope when responding to a question on whether he may still be alive and well, stating: "I'm gonna tell you with Pac, you never know."

There has been much speculation over whether Pac really died after being gunned down in Las Vegas on 7 September 1996, aged 25. Knight was also caught in the crossfire in the shooting after the pair had earlier attended the Mike Seldon vs Mike Tyson fight at the MGM Grand. They were stationary at a red traffic light when a "bow-tied" assassin opened fire at the intersection of Flamingo Road and Koval Lane in Las Vegas.

Shakur's last words were "f**k you" when he was wounded at the scene and was later taken to the University Medical Center of Southern Nevada. He was heavily sedated at the hospital and placed on life-support machines before being put under a barbiturate-induced coma after repeatedly trying to get out of the bed.

He died on the afternoon of 13 September 1996 from internal bleeding. Doctors attempted to revive him but could not stop the haemorrhaging.

Despite dying two decades ago, Pac left quite the legacy, which may play a role in why the world isn't ready to let him go just yet. His double album, All Eyezon Me, is one of the highest-selling rap albums of all time. Over 5 million copies of the record were sole in the US alone by April 1996 – being recertified as a 10x platinum album by 2014.