18 May 2023 , 20:11
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The suspect in the murder of tech superstar Bob Lee was seen in court today, as he pleaded not guilty to the stabbing which led to outcry from billionaire Elon Musk and the wider tech world.
Tech consultant Nima Momeni pleaded not guilty today to a murder charge in the stabbing death of the Cash App founder on the streets of San Francisco
Judge Victor Hwang ordered Momeni kept him in jail without bail, saying there was a high probability his release could result in great bodily harm to others.
Momeni, who appeared in an orange jumpsuit, did not speak and his attorney Paula Canny entered the plea on his behalf.
Lee's death on April 4 shocked San Francisco's tech community. He created Cash App, a mobile payment service, and was the chief product officer of the cryptocurrency MobileCoin.
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Bob Lee, 43, was attacked in the city's plush downtown residential Rincon Hill neighborhoodHe was found outside a condominium building with three stab wounds, including one in the heart, shortly after 2.30am and was taken to a hospital where he later died.
Prosecutors say Momeni, 38, drove Lee to a secluded spot and stabbed him over an apparent dispute related to Momeni's sister, Khazar Elyassnia.
She appeared in court Thursday alongside Momeni's mother.
Prosecutors said that Momeni's DNA was found on the blade handle of the knife and Lee's blood was on the blade.
Nima Momeni in court on May 2 (Gabrielle Lurie/AP/REX/Shutterstock)Canny acknowledged the two men argued in the car before the incident.
She said Momeni's actions were both a measure of self-defense and an accident.
"People can have a fight and not know that somebody's been mortally wounded," she told reporters outside court.
Momeni was arrested last month and charged with murder based on surveillance video and testimony from a friend who was with Lee the day before he died.
Momeni enters the court room (Paul Kuroda/AP/REX/Shutterstock)Details were outlined in a motion to detain Momeni.
The two men had been hanging out with Elyassnia, Momeni's sister, the day before the stabbing, according to the motion.
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The friend, who was not identified by prosecutors, said Momeni later questioned Lee about whether his sister had been engaging in inappropriate behavior and Lee said she had not.
The friend and Lee later parted ways, and surveillance video showed Lee entering the Millennium Tower, where Elyassnia lives, just after midnight.
Momeni pleaded not guilty (AP)Video footage then showed Lee and Momeni leaving the building together shortly after 2am and driving off in Momeni's car.
Prosecutors say that Momeni drove to a dark and secluded spot, in an area of condos and empty tech offices, and attacked Lee with a kitchen knife.
He then sped away "and left victim to slowly die," according to the motion.