A San Mateo County court has brought down its judgment in a case that drew together strands of vengeance, mistaken identity, and the tragic death of a Bay Area rapper known as Cutty Banks. Amanda Sitping Young has been sentenced to 17 years in state prison after pleading no contest to voluntary manslaughter and felony assault with a firearm in connection with the death of rapper Melota Lemafa Lasi Jr., according to the San Mateo County District Attorney's Office, per the San Mateo Daily Journal.
In an act driven by a flawed "street investigation," Young believed Lasi to be liable for her boyfriend's death, San Mateo County District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe said. This misinformation eventually incited Isaiah Reupena to commit a fatal shooting outside a Wells Fargo Bank in December 2020. Reupena has separately been sentenced to 25 years to life in prison after a jury found him guilty of first-degree murder, among other charges, the CBS News San Francisco report detailed.
The case hinges on the repercussions of a misdirected thirst for retribution. Young's partner, Lewis Reupena, died in a road rage incident, leading her to target Lasi as responsible for the crime mistakenly. An investigation, however, later cleared Lasi of involvement in Lewis Reupena's death. Nevertheless, the damage had already been done when Isaiah Reupena, acting on Young's conviction, found Lasi and shot him in what prosecutors deemed an ambush.
At Reupena's sentencing, the victim's family pain was palpable as eight family members, including Lasi's parents, siblings, grandmother, and fiancée, delivered heart-wrenching impact statements witnessed by a packed courtroom. Surveillance video and investigative work eventually led authorities to capture Reupena in Oklahoma and Young in Southern California, as per the social media post from the San Mateo County District Attorney's Office.
In Dec '20, Amanda Sitping Young (33) incited Isaiah Reupena to murder Melota Lasi based on the erroneous belief Lasi had killed his brother in L.A. Young was sentenced to 17 yrs in prison for her actions, while Reupena is already serving 25 yrs. to life for the murder. pic.twitter.com/a3gXH5ls9k
— San Mateo County District Attorney (@SanMateoCoDA) August 22, 2025
