SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The tech consultant charged in Cash App founder Bob Lee ’s stabbing death testified in his own defense Wednesday that he made a “bad joke” to try to put an end to a late night of drinking and doing drugs, and the famous entrepreneur suddenly attacked him. In his first public statements about the events leading to Lee’s death, Nima Momeni said that he joked to Lee that he might want to spend his final night in San Francisco with family rather than trying to find a strip club. Momeni said Lee pulled out a knife and attacked him, forcing him to defend himself.
He said Lee later walked away, showing no signs he was injured. Momeni said he called an attorney when he learned of Lee’s death the following day. “He’s a big famous guy,” he said.
“I’m just an average joe, an immigrant.” Lee, 43, was found staggering on a deserted downtown San Francisco street, dripping a trail of blood and calling for help. He later died at a hospital.
Prosecutors say Momeni, 40, planned the April 4, 2023, attack after a dispute over his younger sister, Khazar Momeni, with whom Lee was friends. They say Momeni took a knife from a unique set in his sister’s condo, drove Lee to a secluded area and stabbed him three times, then fled. The defense says Lee was being erratic and aggressive, having slept only six hours over a four-day period of doing cocaine and ketamine and drinking.
Momeni has pleaded not guilty. He faces 26 years to life in prison if convicted..