By The tech consultant charged with killing Cash App founder Bob Lee took the witness stand Wednesday, claiming the renowned entrepreneur attacked him in a drug-fueled rage after a “bad joke” about ending their night of partying.
Nima Momeni, 40, offered his first public account of the events leading to Lee’s death, painting himself as an “average joe” immigrant defending himself against a larger, famous tech figure. “He’s a big famous guy,” Momeni testified. “I’m just an average joe, an immigrant.”
The testimony comes as Momeni faces 26 years to life in prison if convicted of the April 4, 2023, stabbing that left Lee, 43, dying on a deserted San Francisco street.
According to Momeni, tensions escalated after his sister Khazar kicked both men out of her luxury Millennium Tower condo around 2 a.m., following hours of drug use and drinking. Momeni said he suggested Lee spend his final night in San Francisco with family rather than seeking a strip club – a comment he described as a “bad joke” that inexplicably enraged Lee.
“He just went from zero to 100,” Momeni testified. “You could see the anger.”
Assistant District Attorney Omid Talai challenged this account during cross-examination. “He wanted to kill you over a bad joke?” Talai asked incredulously.
“I’m not sure why he pulled it out,” Momeni responded. “I was in fear for my life.”
Prosecutors paint a different picture, alleging Momeni planned the attack following a dispute over his sister, with whom Lee was friends. They say Momeni took a knife from his sister’s condo, drove Lee to an isolated area near the Bay Bridge, and stabbed him three times before fleeing.
Surveillance footage shows Lee and Momeni leaving the Millennium Tower together after 2 a.m. in Momeni’s BMW. Additional grainy video captures both men exiting the vehicle in a secluded area by the Bay Bridge – where prosecutors say the stabbing occurred, but where the defense claims Lee attacked Momeni.
Police recovered a knife with a 4-inch blade at the scene. Prosecutors said tests revealed Momeni’s DNA on the handle and Lee’s DNA on the bloody blade, though defense experts argued police should have tested for Lee’s fingerprints on the handle.
The defense attributes Lee’s allegedly aggressive behavior to sleep deprivation and substance use, claiming he had slept only six hours over four days while using cocaine and ketamine.
Lee, a father of two who was serving as chief product officer of cryptocurrency platform MobileCoin when he died, was found staggering on a downtown street, leaving a trail of blood while calling for help. He later died at a hospital.
His death shocked Silicon Valley’s tech community, where Lee was remembered as a brilliant and generous entrepreneur. Momeni’s cross-examination continues Thursday.
