Khazar Momeni, the sister of the man accused of fatally stabbing tech executive and Cash App founder Bob Lee in a remote San Francisco neighborhood, took the stand in the trial of Nima Momeni on Thursday afternoon.
Khazar Momeni, 38, appeared as a witness for the prosecution after the lunch break on Thursday and was expected to be asked about her relationship with Lee and the circumstances leading to Lee’s death.
Khazar took the stage in a light blue, long-sleeved dress and grabbed a bottle of water her mother had offered her.
Lee was stabbed repeatedly in the early morning hours of April 4, 2023 in San Francisco’s Rincon Hill/East Cut neighborhood and died on the operating table at a hospital. Nima Momeni was arrested nine days later, with prosecutors alleging that he stabbed Lee with a kitchen knife after a heated argument about his sister’s relationship with Lee and their alleged drug use.
The murder trial started on Monday with prosecutors telling jurors they were “in court with a murderer” and presenting a timeline of the events leading up to the murder. Assistant District Attorney Omid Talai’s opening statement included a description of a text message from Khazar Momeni to her brother that read, “You’re fucking psychotic sometimes,” referring to a confrontation her brother had with Lee.
Charging documents allege a relationship between Lee and Khazar Momeniwho is married to a prominent San Francisco plastic surgeon, and described other concerned text messages she sent to Lee about her brother confronting Lee. The Wall Street Journal reported that Lee and Khazar Momeni belonged to a sex- and drug-fueled underground party scene known in wealthy tech circles in the Bay Area as “The Lifestyle.”
Nima Momeni has pleaded not guilty to the murder and his lawyers will argue this against their client acted in self-defense to what they call a ‘flash of aggression’ from a cocaine-addicted Lee.
Wednesday jurors heard from Borzoyeh “Bo” Mohazzabia friend of Lee and fellow tech entrepreneur who testified that on the night of Lee’s murder, he and Lee saw Khazar Momeni at a friend’s home earlier in the afternoon, where she was seen using multiple “whip-its,” a slang term for nitrous oxide canisters that people inhale to get high.
As the men left the apartment, a friend of Khazar arrived. The women took the drug GHB and reacted poorly, leading to Khazar’s brother Nima coming to pick them up and causing Nima’s later angry phone call to Lee.
Mohazzabi characterized Lee’s mood during those hours as calm and not angry.
