SAN FRANCISCO — An Emeryville man was arrested and charged Thursday within the April 4 stabbing demise of tech govt Robert Lee — and the suspect and the sufferer knew one another earlier than the killing, authorities mentioned.
Nima Momeni, 38, was arrested Thursday morning in Emeryville by San Francisco police, who served a number of search warrants within the East Bay and San Francisco, officers mentioned at a information convention. The arrest of Momeni, the proprietor of an Emeryville tech firm generally known as Expand IT, was first reported by Mission Local.
San Francisco police Chief Bill Scott mentioned on the information convention that Momeni and Robert “Bob” Lee had identified one another earlier than the killing, however he wouldn’t say how they have been linked.
Scott declined to offer particulars concerning the killing, deferring on questions on a potential motive or a homicide weapon. He repeatedly cited the continued investigation into the killing in turning down questions.
Lee, the creator of the CashApp cost service and an govt at MobileCoin, was fatally stabbed about 2:30 a.m. April 4 within the 300 block of Main Street within the Rincon Hill neighborhood. He was pronounced useless at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital.
Scott wouldn’t say Thursday how detectives had developed data that led them to Momeni as a suspect.
“We can confirm that Mr. Lee and Mr. Momeni knew each other,” Scott mentioned, declining to share every other particulars “regarding evidence that confirms that information. … We still have work to do, and our job is to provide the best evidence possible to the District Attorney and her team so we can bring this case to justice.”
San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins mentioned that Momeni had been charged with homicide, with an enhancement that the killing was dedicated with a knife. Momeni was scheduled to be arraigned Friday afternoon; Jenkins mentioned her workplace would ask a decide to order Momeni held with out bail.
Both Scott and Jenkins took time to supply condolences to Lee’s household and buddies.
The killing shortly drew consideration in nationwide media, each as a result of Lee’s prominence within the tech neighborhood and to political debate over the difficulty of crime in massive cities like San Francisco.
Asked about using the killing to painting San Francisco as particularly lawless and violent, Scott mentioned partly that “this is more about human nature, human behavior than it is about our city. … This is not about San Francisco. … Facts show that most people who commit homicide know the people that they kill.”
Jenkins additionally blasted outstanding media figures criticizing the town, saying that such a story “negatively impacts the pursuit of justice for victims of crime as it spreads misinformation at a time when the police are trying to solve a very difficult case,” Jenkins mentioned.
Lee had been chief product officer at MobileCoin, a cryptocurrency and digital funds startup, since 2021. Previous posts included chief expertise officer at Square — the place he created CashApp, initially generally known as Square Cash — and software program engineer at Google. He additionally invested in and suggested quite a few startups.
A web site for Momeni’s firm, Expand IT, may very well be seen Thursday morning however was taken down later within the day. A name to the cellphone quantity listed on the corporate web site was not returned.
In a social-media submit, Lee’s brother Timothy Lee referred to as Bob “a loving Son, brother and father.” That assertion continued as follows:
He positively affected thousands and thousands of individuals all through his life. He had an overarching have to make expertise accessible, and to assist out everybody. Bob’s dream was to make expertise free and accessible.
From a modest upbringing within the midwest, he began out programing and making internet pages for the small enterprise that bordered his mother and father personal retailer. Many individuals could not know, within the early days of tech one of many first pc viruses, Code Red, shut down the world. A younger Bob created the answer unpaid after which gave it to the world at no cost. That’s who Bob was.
He spent the remainder of his profession on that very same path. Through his assist in creating Android, he made a less expensive and broadly used OS. With Square, later block, he was capable of resolve a serious drawback for small companies and assist them to democratize value efficient funds. With Cash App, he helped the all individuals entry the digital funds world. What attracted him to MobileCoin was their thought to attach enterprise and funds world wide.
Bob cherished being in San Francisco, and San Francisco cherished Bob. Walking down the road would typically be tough as a result of each younger particular person with a dream would search him out, and he would find time for each one.
After our Mom’s passing 3 years in the past, Dad moved in with Bob to share in his life and help. Bob’s new job took him to Miami, Dad got here alongside as properly. His love for his Family and San Francisco stored him coming again.
Personally, Bob felt it was vital to not decide based mostly on someones beliefs. This precipitated so many individuals to like him from a Burning Man Camp to San Francisco to Miami and the world over. This philosophy afforded him buddies from each stroll of life. His love of music and artwork created an incredible group of actually particular person and loving individuals. This neighborhood has been extraordinarily supportive in his passing.
Every day world wide, individuals work together with expertise that Bob helped create. Bob will dwell on by way of these interactions and his goals of bettering all of our lives.
As a household, we’re very grateful to the laborious working Detectives on the SFPD for bringing his killer to Justice. Our subsequent steps might be to work with the District Attorney’s workplace to make sure that this particular person is just not allowed to harm anybody else or stroll free.
From the Family of Bob Lee
Source: www.bostonherald.com”