Bob Lee murder: Footage appears to show Nima Momeni stab CashApp founder with kitchen knife under Bay Bridge
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA: CashApp founder Bob Lee was viciously stabbed to death by IT consultant Nima Momeni just hours after the pair fought about the latter’s sister, Khazar Momeni, per court documents. Nima, who is charged with the murder, reportedly confronted the entrepreneur about whether he was doing “anything inappropriate” with Khazar, who is married to well-known plastic surgeon Dr Dino Elyassnia.
Lee, 43, was a millionaire and a divorced father of two who worked in the San Francisco Bay Area tech industry while suspect Nima Momeni, 38, is a Bay Area tech consultant. The suspect was arrested at his Emeryville home and booked into a San Francisco jail on Thursday, April 13. Prosecutors filed court documents outlining what led to the killing as well as detailing surveillance footage retrieved by police that appeared to capture the incident.
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Surveillance footage explained
Surveillance footage retrieved from Millennium Tower, where Khazar Momeni owns an apartment, showed Nima Momeni exiting a white BMW Z4 after arriving at 8:31 pm. Lee arrives at the high-rose a little more than four hours later, at 12.39 am, per court records. Shortly after 2 am, Lee and Nima Momeni are reported seen taking an elevator to the building's lobby, getting into the suspect's BMW, and leaving.
The court documents state that additional footage obtained by police appeared to show Lee getting stabbed by Momeni under the Bay Bridge on Main Street. The video allegedly shows a BMW and its glowing tail lights, indicating the vehicle was parked. Investigators believe Lee and Momeni were the two people standing outside of the car based on the clothing they were wearing while leaving Millennium Tower.
Fellow tech executive Nima Momeni has been arrested in relation to the homicide of Cash App founder, Bob Lee. Looks like a confrontation occurred while they were together in a vehicle and he tried to run. The knife used in his murder was recovered not far away. San Francisco,… pic.twitter.com/jGdisKlpQJ
— Rose (@901Lulu) April 13, 2023
The duo seemed to move closer at one point before Lee walks away, appearing to be wounded. Momeni then walks to a fence -- where police reportedly recovered a bloody silver and black knife (believed to be the murder weapon) -- before getting back in the BMW and fleeing the scene. Court records noted that Lee was stabbed three times - once in the hip and twice in the chest. One of the stab wounds punctured his heart and killed him.
'This was a planned and deliberate attack'
“The defendant not only drove the victim to a secluded area in the opposite direction of his hotel, but also brought a kitchen knife with him,” prosecutors said in court filings. “Defendant did not use some type of pocket knife, but a cooking knife from an apartment kitchen. This was a planned and deliberate attack," they added.
Surveillance footage early on April 4 showed Lee frantically seeking help and trying to use his phone after the stabbing. He somehow managed to call 911 and was rushed to San Francisco General Hospital, where he, unfortunately, succumbed to his wounds.
@DailyMail posted the CCTV footage showing Cash App founder Bob Lee asking for help after being stabbed, the car drove off. Then walked towards the apartment building staggering, holding his midsection and collapsing. #BobLee #SanFrancisco pic.twitter.com/1t83GNNpmt
— DeL2000 (@DeL2000) April 7, 2023
Police were able to unlock Lee's phone during an investigation into the killing. They found he had a FaceTime call with Khazar Momeni, but court documents did not reveal exactly when that conversation took place, The San Francisco Standard reported.