Bob Lee murder: Nima Momeni's sentencing set for May
Nima Momeni convicted of 2nd-degree murder for stabbing Cash App founder Bob Lee
Nima Momeni faces 16 years to life in prison for using a knife to fatally stab Cash App founder Bob Lee in San Francisco.
SAN FRANCISCO - A San Francisco judge has set the sentencing date for a tech consultant convicted in the stabbing death of Cash App founder Bob Lee for May 16.
The killer, Nima Momeni, refused to come to court on Friday as he faces 16 years to life for second-degree murder.
Killing of Bob Lee
The backstory:
In December, a jury found Momeni, 40, guilty in the April 4, 2023, death of Lee, a beloved tech mogul who was found staggering on a deserted downtown street, leaving a trail of blood and calling for help. Lee, 43, later died at a hospital.
Prosecutors said Momeni planned the attack on Lee, driving him to an isolated spot under the Bay Bridge and stabbing him three times, including once in the heart, with a knife he took from his sister’s kitchen.
They say Momeni was angry with Lee for introducing his younger sister to a drug dealer she says gave her GHB and other drugs and then sexually assaulted her.
But Momeni testified on the stand that Lee was the one who attacked him with a knife, angry after the tech consultant chided him about spending more time with his family instead of searching for a strip club that night. Momeni, who studies martial arts, said he didn’t realize he had fatally wounded Lee or that Lee was even hurt.
Featured
Families react to Nima Momeni murder verdict in death of Cash App founder Bob Lee
Following Tuesday's guilty verdict of Nima Momeni in the stabbing death of Cash App founder Bob Lee, the family members of the two men at the center of the case spoke out after the jury announced its verdict at the San Francisco Hall of Justice.
National attention
What they're saying:
The case has drawn national attention, partly due to Lee’s status in the tech world. At first, his death inflamed debate over public safety in San Francisco as X owner Elon Musk took to the social media site to post that "violent crime in SF is horrific and even if attackers are caught, they are often released immediately."
San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins said the verdict showed that the killing was a targeted crime and not an example of random lawlessness in the city.
Sister says Nima Momeni calm after she told him she overdrugged and was slapped on her rear
The sister of accused killer Nima Momeni testified Monday that her brother was "calm and collected" after she told him the alleged drug dealer for Cash App founder Bob Lee had given her and a friend "too much drugs" and had slapped her on her rear. The defendant has been charged with fatally stabbing Lee.
"We are a city committed to accountability, we are a city committed to public safety," Jenkins told reporters after the hearing.
Momeni has been in custody since his arrest in April 2023, when he was charged with first-degree murder.
Lee had created the mobile payment service Cash App and was the chief product officer of the cryptocurrency MobileCoin when he died. He had recently moved to Miami from San Francisco and had returned to California for a visit.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
The Source: Sentencing hearing held on February 7, 2025 along with previous reporting.