Cash App founder stabbing: Man accused in murder had previous citation for domestic battery
The man accused of stabbing Cas App founder Bob Lee to death in early San Francisco on April 4 was previously cited for domestic battery in his 2022 loft.
Bay Area technical director Nima Momeni was arrested Aug. 1 for allegedly beating a woman in Emeryville, a small town just north of Oakland.
An unnamed woman called police and reported that Momeni “grabbed her arm and pulled it, pushed her physically,” data obtained by the SF Chronicle to reveal.
In addition, the Bay Area outlet reports that police have been called to Momeni’s home on three other occasions in the past four years.
Momeni, 38, is accused of stabbing Bob Lee three times with a kitchen knife at around 2:30 a.m. near the western end of the Bay Bridge. Investigators believe Momeni confronted Lee about dating his sister, who is married.
Nima Momeni, the man accused of stabbing Cas App founder Bob Lee to death in early San Francisco on April 4, was previously cited for domestic battery in his 2022 loft
Lee, the founder and creator of Cash App, was stabbed in San Francisco on April 4
In the August 2022 incident, the woman who contacted police said that Momeni had gotten physical and assaulted her and that she needed help.
Police arrived at Momeni’s building within 10 minutes of the 3:11 p.m. call.
Once on scene, police met the woman in a stairwell and Momeni arrived moments later to talk to them.
According to the report obtained by the SF Chronicle, the officers charged and released Momeni on suspicion of battery almost an hour after the call came in.
They then waited with the victim arranging transportation before finally giving her a ride.
In another incident at Momeni’s residence in October, police said his car – a white BMW – had been vandalized.
The vehicle is the same vehicle police believe drove Lee to where he later fatally stabbed him in the downtown area.
In that case, the man said he knew who tampered with his car, but the records did not show how the situation was resolved.
A June 2019 call from his home to the Emeryville Police Department reported possible identity theft.
However, records obtained by the local news outlet did not indicate whether Momeni was the caller. The person told police they noticed suspicious credit card denials in the mail.
In the August 2022 incident, the woman who contacted police said Momeni (pictured above) had gotten physical and attacked her and she needed help
Momeni pictured in a court sketch Friday. His sister was in court to assist him. The couple immigrated to the US from Iran as children
Khazar and her husband, plastic surgeon Dr. Dino Elyassnia, Friday at her brother’s arraignment. Prosecutors presented part of their case on Friday and she is at the center of her brother’s alleged motive
Momeni’s lawyer said in a recent interview that Lee and Khazar Elyassnia were in a relationship
Momeni’s lawyer said the former IT consultant has been on suicide watch in the city jail since his arrest in mid-April.
Paula Canny said Momeni was under close scrutiny, which is “standard” in high-profile cases in San Francisco.
The lawyer also confirmed a relationship between Lee and Momeni’s sister, Khazar Elyassnia, in an interview with the New York Post.
“Bob Lee and his sister definitely knew each other,” Canny said.
Prosecutors allege that Lee and Momeni were arguing over Khazar at the time of the stabbing.
Video footage first obtained by DailyMail.com showed Lee stumbling through the streets of downtown San Francisco before collapsing and dying from his injuries.
The suspected killer is said to have been grilling Lee about whether Khazar had “used drugs or anything inappropriate.”
Khazar is married to Dr. Dino Elyassnia, one of San Francisco’s top plastic surgeons.
A witness who said he had been friends with Lee for 10 years told police he believed Lee and Khazar had an intimate relationship.
The unnamed witness said Khazar and her husband’s marriage may be in danger.
Canny, pictured, says Lee and Momeni weren’t close friends – and that the slain tycoon was much closer to Momeni’s sister Khazar Elyassnia
Momeni’s arrest came days after Lee’s stabbing sent shockwaves throughout the area
On April 4, Lee was filmed on surveillance cameras as he stumbled into a downtown San Francisco apartment building at 2:35 a.m. after being stabbed. Yesterday, police searched the nearby apartment of Momeni’s sister, Khazar. It is unclear whether they had been together or in the apartment earlier in the evening
Momeni’s lawyer has argued that there is much more to this story than meets the eye.
“There’s so much more to it — and a much bigger backstory than what’s been revealed in the government’s pleadings at all,” she said.
She warned that the San Francisco District Attorney’s Office “seem to think they have enough to make an arrest, but I haven’t seen it.”
“So, until I see it and analyze it, I’m going to say they made a mistake,” she added. ‘There isn’t enough [to hold him].’
Momeni has been jailed without bail and is expected to appear in San Francisco Superior Court on April 25.