2nd Suspect Jailed In San Mateo Murder Of Rap Artist Cutty Banks; Believed To Be Mistaken ID Retaliation
SAN MATEO (CBS SF) -- A Southern California woman who wrongly believed a Bay Area rap artist was responsible for killing her boyfriend was arrested in connection to the rapper's murder outside a San Mateo bank in December, police said Tuesday.
Amanda Young, 29, of Torrance was arrested in that city by San Mateo police detectives on Thursday. She was extradited and is currently in custody at the San Mateo County Jail in Redwood City.
Young faces homicide and conspiracy charges in the shooting death of Melota Lasi, a rap artist who performed under the name Cutty Banks, who was killed in the parking lot of a Wells Fargo branch at 81 W. Hillsdale Blvd. on Dec. 19.
Earlier this month, police arrested Isaiah Reupena in Oklahoma as a suspect in Lasi's killing. During the months-long investigation, detectives learned Reupena's brother, Lewis Reupena, had been shot and killed in a road rage incident in Southern California in August.
According to police, Lewis Reupena was Young's boyfriend, and Young concluded after doing her own investigation with members of the Reupena family and friends that Lasi was responsible. However, the California Highway Patrol investigated Lewis Reupena's homicide and determined Lasi was not involved.
Police said Young convinced Isaiah Reupena that Lasi was responsible for his brother's murder, prompting him to drive to San Mateo to find Lasi and kill him for revenge. Reupena then drove back to Southern California and later moved to Oklahoma, where he was arrested.
Young had also moved to Oklahoma with the Reupena family for a short time after Lasi's killing, police said, but moved back to Southern California where she was arrested.