Tech consultant charged in killing of Cash App founder Lee
SAN FRANCISCO –
A tech guide was arrested and charged with homicide Thursday within the stabbing demise of the gregarious and well-liked Cash App founder Bob Lee final week in downtown San Francisco, authorities mentioned.
Nima Momeni, 38, and Lee, 43, knew one another, San Francisco Police Chief Bill Scott mentioned at a news convention, however he declined to elaborate on their connection. Momeni was taken into custody Thursday morning in Emeryville, a San Francisco suburb, and booked on suspicion of homicide.
The stabbing demise of Lee shocked the tech business, with pals and former colleagues mourning the demise of an excellent and beneficiant man. Police discovered Lee with stab wounds within the Rincon Hill neighborhood of San Francisco at 2:30 a.m. April 4. He died at a hospital.
Scott declined to offer particulars on how they linked the killing to Momeni. The chief additionally refused to reveal a attainable motive. Investigators served search warrants in San Francisco and Emeryville. Scott wouldn’t say whether or not a weapon has been discovered.
San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins mentioned in an announcement that Momeni has been charged with homicide in Lee’s demise and is anticipated to be arraigned Friday. Prosecutors will ask a choose to carry him with out bail, she mentioned.
It was not instantly clear whether or not Momeni has an legal professional who may converse on his behalf.
On his LinkedIn profile, Momeni describes himself as an “IT Consultant/Entrepreneur” in addition to the proprietor of an organization referred to as Expand IT. Business filings with the state record Momeni because the chief government officer, secretary and chief monetary officer of Expand IT INC, described as an info know-how consulting business. He signed the submitting in August 2022.
According to his LinkedIn profile, Momeni has been “a dedicated technology partner since 2005” and that he began Expand IT in 2010.
Criminal information present Momeni was charged with carrying a switchblade in 2011, a misdemeanor offense. The case was dismissed the next 12 months after he took a plea.
Publicist Sam Singer met Momeni a couple of month in the past as Singer has an workplace subsequent door to Momeni’s live-work loft within the fashionable Besler Building Lofts. Singer described Momeni as “very welcoming, warm” and his loft as a “typical Bay Area technology consultant’s office” with a giant pool desk, connoisseur meals and high-end stereo system.
Lee is understood for creating the extensively used cell fee service Cash App whereas working as chief know-how officer of the fee firm Square, now generally known as Block. He was the chief product officer for the cryptocurrency agency MobileCoin on the time of his demise.
Lee was raised in Missouri and had lately moved to Miami along with his father, however was again in San Francisco for business when he was killed. Friends described him as adventurous and fearless, and a doting father to his two kids.
“I acknowledge and understand how the loss of a young, vibrant leader and innovator has rocked our city and even beyond,” Jenkins mentioned on the news convention.
Lee’s brother, Tim Oliver Lee, posted on Facebook the household’s gratitude to the San Francisco Police Department for catching the suspect. Tim Lee mentioned his brother dreamed of creating know-how accessible to all and that he made pals from all walks of life.
“Bob loved being in San Francisco, and San Francisco loved Bob. Walking down the street would sometimes be difficult because every young person with a dream would search him out, and he would make time for every one,” his brother wrote.
After Lee’s killing, distinguished tech leaders, together with tech billionaire Elon Musk, took to Twitter to mourn Lee’s demise and blame San Francisco for what they referred to as the town’s lax angle towards crime.
Musk tweeted at Jenkins, saying that crime in San Francisco is “horrific” and that even when attackers are caught, they’re typically instantly launched.
Mayor London Breed and different prime metropolis officers have pushed towards that narrative and on Thursday, Jenkins addressed Musk instantly.
“I must point out that reckless and irresponsible statements like those contained in Mr. Musk tweet that assumed incorrect circumstances about Mr. Lee’s death serve to mislead the world in their perceptions of San Francisco,” Jenkins mentioned.
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Stefanie Dazio contributed from Los Angeles.
