As the trial approaches, lawyers talk about witnesses, clothing, cake

Attorneys argued in San Francisco Superior Court today over who might be called as a witness in the upcoming trial of Nima Momeni, who is accused of killing CashApp founder Bob Lee in SoMa last year. Specifically, they discussed whether Momeni and his sister, who was considered a key witness in the case, would take the stand.

Khazar Momeni is said to have been the reason Nima Momeni and Lee knew each other, and prosecutors suggest she may have been the cause of a dispute between the two men.

A key piece of evidence in Momeni's case revolves around a text message from Momeni's sister that was discovered on Lee's phone the night of the murder: “I just wanted to make sure you were OK because I know Nima was veeeeery hard on you. And thank you for being such a noble man and handling this with class. I love you, you selfish idiots.”

The two men were seen on surveillance cameras leaving Khazar Momeni's SoMa home together in April 2023. Shortly thereafter, surveillance video showed Lee staggering through the dark streets after being stabbed and left to bleed to death near the Bay Bridge, where the two had driven together.

Today, in a hearing just three weeks before the trial is scheduled to begin, prosecutor Omid Talai said he would not call Khazar Momeni to the witness stand.

Khazar Momeni “is in some ways a central, attentive witness to the events of that night, and the defense has told the press that they plan to call him as a witness at trial,” Talai said. “If they do that, now is the time to speak out. In fact, it was last week.”

Saam Zangeneh, Momeni's lead lawyer, seemed surprised when he learned this fact.

“If they want to leave this piece of evidence unexplained, that's fine with me,” Zangeneh said, referring to the text message Khazar Momeni sent to her brother. “If the trial started tomorrow, I would not call Ms. Momeni as a witness,” he said, adding that he may change his mind as the proceedings progress.

Judge Alexandra Gordon warned Zangeneh against manipulating the rules that require lawyers to list all the witnesses they intend to call: “If it actually appears that you have always intended to call them … you can imagine the consequences.”