AP’s San Francisco Before the well-known murder case is put to a jury, defense lawyers for a software consultant accused of murdering Cash App inventor Bob Lee delivered their last arguments on Tuesday.
Nima Momeni plotted the April 2023 attack, according to the prosecution’s closing statement on Monday, after learning that the tech tycoon had met his younger sister to a drug dealer who allegedly gave her GHB and other narcotics before sexually abusing her at his residence.
They claim that Momeni enticed Lee to a remote location near the Bay Bridge, stabbed him three times with a knife from his sister’s kitchen set, and then fled in his vehicle.
However, defense lawyer Saam Zangeneh claimed on Tuesday that prosecutors have not given jurors the complete story, leaving out information and neglecting to look into potential paths that could undermine their case.
He stated that motive is the foundation of the government’s entire case. This story doesn’t make sense if there is no reason or explanation for why my client would have a knife in his pocket when he left his sister’s apartment. It doesn’t add up.
If found guilty of murder, Momeni could spend 26 years to life in jail.
Around two in the morning, the two men may be seen on surveillance footage leaving the defendant’s sister Khazar Momeni’s upscale condo and entering Momeni’s BMW. They are then seen exiting the vehicle close to the Bay Bridge in other surveillance footage.
Momenitestified that Lee spilled the drink he was holding when he hit a pothole and halted his vehicle. He then joked, according to Momeni, that Lee should spend the final night of his trip with family rather than looking for a strip club to keep the party going.
According to Momeni, Lee abruptly took a knife from his jacket pocket at that moment. He claimed that Lee later left without displaying any symptoms of an injury.
On Monday, the prosecution provided jurors with specifics on why Momeni’s account lacked supporting evidence. According to them, Momeni never reported Lee’s claimed attack to the police, not even after finding out that Lee had died from stab wounds on the street where he had last seen him.
Zangeneh avoided thinking about the specifics of Tuesday morning’s attack.
Rather, he questioned the veracity of one of Lee’s acquaintances who stated in court that Momeni interrogated Lee on the phone about what had happened to his sister while he was at the drug dealer’s residence just hours prior to the stabbing.
Additionally, he played back the security footage, which revealed that Lee had not always been the calm teddy bear that his family and friends had represented him as. He said that toxicology findings minimized the amount of alcohol, cocaine, and ketamine that Lee had consumed over the course of several days.
Zangeneh questioned why the worn-out paring knife used in the stabbing was not shown to jurors in detail as part of the evidence. He speculated that the knife might have come from someone else’s kitchen or that Lee might have brought it along to snort more cocaine.
He claimed that when they left his sister’s condo, Lee and Momeni were cordial and pleasant, and that Momeni was angry with the drug dealer rather than Lee.
At 2:30 a.m., Lee was discovered wobbling, pouring blood, screaming cries for assistance on an empty street in downtown San Francisco. Later, he passed away at a hospital.
On Tuesday, the defense continues its closing argument. Before the case is sent to jurors, the prosecution will have an opportunity to provide counter arguments.
The Associated Press, 2024. All rights reserved. All rights reserved. It is prohibited to publish, broadcast, rewrite, or redistribute this content without authorization.
Note: Every piece of content is rigorously reviewed by our team of experienced writers and editors to ensure its accuracy. Our writers use credible sources and adhere to strict fact-checking protocols to verify all claims and data before publication. If an error is identified, we promptly correct it and strive for transparency in all updates, feel free to reach out to us via email. We appreciate your trust and support!