San Francisco –
A technology consultant was arrested Thursday and charged with murder in connection with the stabbing death of Bob Lee, the founder of the socially popular Cash App, in downtown San Francisco last week, officials said.
Nima Momeni, 38, and Lee, 43, knew each other, San Francisco Police Chief Bill Scott said at a news conference, but he declined to elaborate on their connection. He was taken into custody Thursday morning in the San Francisco suburb of Emeryville and booked on suspicion of murder.
Lee’s stinging death sent shockwaves through the tech industry, leaving friends and former colleagues to mourn the death of a brilliant and generous man. Police found Lee with a stab wound at 2:30 a.m. on April 4 in San Francisco’s Rincon His Hill neighborhood. he died in the hospital.
Scott declined to provide details about how he linked the killings to Momeni. issued a warrant. Scott did not say if a weapon was found.
San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins said in a statement that Momeni has been charged with murder in Lee’s death and is expected to be arraigned on Friday. She said she would ask for restraint.
It was not immediately clear if Momeni had a lawyer who could speak on his behalf.
In her LinkedIn profile, Momeni describes herself as an “IT consultant/entrepreneur” and owner of a company called Expand IT. Mr. Momeni is described in a business filing filed with the State List as Chief Executive Officer, Secretary and Chief Financial Officer of Expand IT INC as Information Technology Consulting his business. He signed the papers on his August 2022.
According to their LinkedIn profile, Momeni has been “a dedicated technology partner since 2005” and launched Expand IT in 2010.
According to criminal records, Momeni was charged in 2011 with misdemeanor charges and possession of a switchblade. After he pleaded, the case was dismissed the following year.
Publicist Sam Singer met Momeni about a month ago. Singer has an office next door to Momeni’s Livework Loft in the stylish Bessler Building Loft. He described his loft as “the quintessential Bay Area technology consultant’s office,” complete with a large pool table, gourmet cuisine, and a high-end stereo system.
Lee is known for creating the widely used mobile payment service Cash App while working as the chief technology officer for payment company Square, now known as Block. At the time of his death, he was chief product officer of cryptocurrency company MobileCoin.
Lee grew up in Missouri and recently moved to Miami with his father, but was returning to San Francisco for business when he was killed. described him as a loving father of two children.
“We recognize and understand that the loss of a young, vibrant leader and innovator has rocked our city and beyond,” Jenkins said at a press conference.
Lee’s brother, Tim Oliver Lee, posted on Facebook the family’s gratitude to the San Francisco Police Department for catching the suspect. He said he dreamed of being able to do so, and that he has made friends from all walks of life.
“Bob loved being in San Francisco, and San Francisco loved Bob. Sometimes it was hard to walk the streets because every young man with a dream would seek him out, and because I made time for it,” his brother wrote.
After Lee’s murder, prominent tech leaders, including tech billionaire Elon Musk, took to Twitter to mourn Lee’s death and criticize San Francisco’s lax stance on crime.
Musk tweeted about Jenkins, saying that crime in San Francisco is “horrifying” and that attackers are often released quickly when caught.
London Mayor Breed and other city officials objected to the story, and on Thursday Jenkins spoke directly to Musk.
“I must point out that the reckless and irresponsible statements contained in Musk’s tweet, such as the inaccurate assumption of the circumstances surrounding Lee’s death, mislead the world’s perception of San Francisco,” Jenkins said. won’t,” he said.
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Stefanie Dazio contributed from Los Angeles.
