Assata Shakur, a political activist and the godmother of pioneering rapper Tupac Shakur, died Sept. 25. She was 78.

Her death was confirmed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Cuba, where she had been living in exile since escaping a New Jersey prison. Shakur, whose legal name is Joanne Deborah Byron, was convicted in 1977 of killing a state trooper in a shootout on the New Jersey turnpike four years prior.

Shakur died in Havana, Cuba, "due to health conditions and advanced age," the ministry said. She was a close friend of slain rapper Tupac's mother, Afeni Shakur, a fellow activist and member of the Black Panther Party.

A New York City native, Shakur first joined the Black Panther Party after graduating college, contributing to the group's political activism and community-focused initiatives. She later moved to an offshoot of the Black-power group, known as the Black Liberation Army, which opted for more militant tactics.

Starting in the early '70s, Shakur had frequent run-ins with law enforcement, her name appearing as a person of interest for bank robberies and several violent assaults on police officers. She was a wanted woman by both the FBI and the New York Police Department.

She was not arrested, however, until 1973 when she and two others were stopped on the New Jersey Turnpike for a motor vehicle violation. At the time, she was wanted for her involvement in several felonies.

When she and her "accomplices" allegedly opened fire on the New Jersey State troopers, one officer was wounded and the other was shot and killed. She fled the scene but was subsequently apprehended. One of her "accomplices" was killed in the shoot-out, and the other remains in jail, according to the FBI. Shakur maintains that she did not open fire and was shot while her hands were above her head.

In 1977, Shakur was convicted on several counts, including first-degree murder, assault and battery of a police officer. She was sentenced to life in prison but escaped in November of 1979, living underground before being granted political asylum in Cuba in 1984.

In the years since, she has become a potent political symbol, representing for some a valiant soldier in the war against an oppressive and racist police state. Her 1988 memoir, "Assata: An Autobiography," has had an enduring influence on the Black power movement.

The government has adopted a different tone, placing her name on the FBI's Most Wanted list, and insisting her return is key to normalizing relations with Cuba.

Contributing: Taijuan Moorman

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Assata Shakur, Tupac's godmother who sought political asylum in Cuba, dead at 78

Reporting by Anna Kaufman, USA TODAY / USA TODAY

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