Presenting Foundering Season 6: The Killing of Bob Lee, Part 1

Summary

Odd Lots Podcast: Foundering Season 6, The Killing of Bob Lee – Part 1

Date: April 26, 2026
Host: Bloomberg
Episode Theme: The murder of prominent tech executive Bob Lee, the public and media reaction, and the political narratives it sparked about San Francisco, crime, and tech culture.

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1. Episode Overview

This episode is a special feature, presenting the first part of Bloomberg’s Foundering series examining the murder of Bob Lee. Reporter/host Sean Wen walks through the night of the crime, the media firestorm and rampant speculation that ensued, and the way Lee’s death became both a political football and a Rorschach test for anxieties about San Francisco’s future. The episode combines police audio, family interviews, and expert commentary to unpack what actually happened—and what society projected onto the tragedy.

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2. Detailed Breakdown of Key Discussion Points

A. The Night of Bob Lee’s Death (00:39–02:58)

• 911 Call and Response:
  Sean Wen introduces audio from the early hours of April 4, 2023. A confused and wounded caller struggles to communicate (later revealed as Bob Lee), repeating, “Help. Help.”

  • Notable Moment: The emotional weight of the 911 exchange, culminating in Officer Drew Jackson arriving and finding Lee gravely wounded.

• First Responders and Immediate Aftermath:
  Officer Jackson attempts first aid. Lee is pronounced dead a few hours later from multiple stab wounds. Police have no suspect or motive.

B. Who Was Bob Lee? (02:58–06:50)

• A Tech Luminary:
  Wen outlines Lee’s career: pivotal roles at Google (Android), CTO at Square, founder of Cash App—respected and beloved in the tech scene.

• Shock and Rumor:
  Lee’s murder sends “shockwaves” through tech circles. The nine days without an arrest create a vacuum quickly filled by speculation and panic—“rumors, fear and misinformation rushed in to fill the void.”

  • Sean Wen (03:46): “Bob Lee's death became a symbol of what came to be known as the San Francisco Doom Loop.”

C. The Narrative Spiral: Crime, Politics, and San Francisco (06:50–24:23)

• Tech and Political Outrage:
  The city’s law-and-order narrative takes off online and in media, amplified by tech leaders blaming progressive policies and politicians (notably DA Chesa Boudin).

  • Elon Musk (16:37): Tweets, “Violent crime in San Francisco is horrific... Is the city taking stronger action to incarcerate repeat offenders?”

• Brooke Jenkins Responds:
  Current DA Jenkins recalls being “shocked” that Elon Musk tagged her on Twitter, generating a media firestorm overnight (17:07–17:26).

• Mainstream & Fringe Amplification:
  Conservative commentators, YouTubers, and right-wing pundits leverage Lee’s death to declare “cities are dead” and attack Democratic leadership.

  • Scott Adams (18:07): “I tend to think cities are dead… The next time cities will be alive is when robots rebuild them.”
  • Dave Rubin (19:20): “San Francisco has completely collapsed… It’s a zombie apocalypse.”

• Disconnect Between Crime Data and Perceptions:
  Wen points out that overall reported crime in San Francisco is at a 20-year low and that homicide rates are among the lowest for a major US city (20:19–23:45). However, the perception gap grows due to visible suffering and sensational stories.

  • Sean Wen (20:44): “San Francisco suffers from a persistent gap between what the data show and how people feel.”

• Cultural Moment:
  Even comedians like Dave Chappelle and politicians like Ron DeSantis use the city’s reputation for campaign fodder—“what the blank happened to this place?” (23:45)

D. Personal Impact: Krista Lee’s Grief (07:51–14:20, 34:02–34:49)

• Last Texts and Family Reaction:
  Interviews with Lee’s ex-wife Krista capture the confusion, dread, and devastation as she tracks his phone, fields calls from friends, and ultimately learns he has died.

  • Krista Lee (08:09): Reads her last exchange with Bob: “Hey sexy boys… I feel like crap… oh feel better babe, we’ll hit you up tomorrow. And that was the last message I heard from him.”
  • Krista Lee (12:08): On being told of Bob’s death: “I couldn’t even make a tear… I have to tell my children their father was stabbed to death…”

• Public News Breaks:
  Media outlets report the story before Krista can even share it with family, compounding her distress.

E. Politicization and Public Reaction (25:41–33:20)

• San Francisco Police Commission Comments:
  Police Commissioner Kevin Benedicto recalls efforts to rebut unsubstantiated claims about “random street crime,” instead pleading for patience and respect for the ongoing investigation.

  • Kevin Benedicto (27:31): "Some people out there... are exploiting this horrific incident for political gain."

• Vicious Backlash:
  Benedicto faces threats and ridicule online after his comments go viral.

  • Kevin Benedicto (28:50): “I watched my remarks back to make sure that I didn’t confess to the murder because why else would someone be threatening me and threatening my family?”

• Tech Podcasts Join In:
  Hosts Jason Calacanis and David Sachs on the “All In” podcast echo harsh critiques of city leadership. Sachs speculates, without evidence, that Lee’s death resembles a recent murder by a “psychotic homeless person.”

  • David Sachs (32:16): “I would bet dollars to dimes the story is very similar… just releasing these people onto the street is an outrageous abdication of responsibility…”

F. The Truth Emerges: Arrest and Reality (33:46–38:02)

• Days of Uncertainty:
  As speculation surges, the investigation continues. Krista returns to Miami to close up Bob’s affairs, still without answers.

• Arrest of Nima Momeni (35:06–36:07):
  After nine days, police arrest another tech executive, Nima Momeni, who knew Lee. The Chief of Police and DA publicly clarify that this was not a random crime.

  • Bill Scott (36:16): “This is more about human nature and human behavior than it is about our city. Facts show… most people who commit homicides know the people that they kill.”

• Calling Out Misleading Narratives:
  DA Jenkins criticizes Musk and others for reckless speculation that misled the public and hindered justice.

  • Brooke Jenkins (36:46): “Reckless and irresponsible statements… served to mislead the world in their perceptions of San Francisco and also negatively impact the pursuit of justice…”

• A More Complex Story:
  The facts reveal a highly personal tragedy within an insular tech subculture of partying and risk, not a tale of urban decay.

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3. Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Sean Wen (03:46):
  “Bob Lee's death became a symbol of what came to be known as the San Francisco Doom Loop.”

• Krista Lee (08:09):
  “Hey sexy boys… feel better babe. We’ll hit you up tomorrow. And that was the last message that I heard from him.”

• Elon Musk (16:37, via Twitter):
  “Violent crime in San Francisco is horrific, and even if attackers are caught, they are often released immediately…”

• Brooke Jenkins (17:26):
  “I was shocked that [Elon Musk] knew my name at all. I think about 6 million people saw it within 24 hours…”

• Scott Adams (18:07):
  “I tend to think that cities are dead. I think they're dead. The next time the cities will be alive is when robots rebuild them.”

• Kevin Benedicto (27:31):
  "Some people out there on the media and social media... are exploiting this horrific incident for political gain."

• David Sachs (32:16):
  “I would bet dollars to dimes that the story is very similar to a case... stabbed [by] a psychotic homeless person…”

• Bill Scott, SFPD Chief (36:16):
  “This is more about human nature and human behavior than it is about our city... most people who commit homicides know the people that they kill.”

• Brooke Jenkins (36:46):
  “Reckless and irresponsible statements... served to mislead the world in their perceptions of San Francisco and also negatively impact the pursuit of justice for victims of crime.”

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4. Key Segment Timestamps

• 00:39–02:58: Bob Lee’s 911 call and immediate police response
• 02:58–06:50: Wen explores Lee’s career and the shock gripping the tech world
• 06:50–14:20: Krista Lee recounts last interactions and learning of her ex-husband’s death
• 14:20–24:23: Media, Twitter, and political narratives spiral; data vs perceptions of crime
• 25:41–33:20: City officials attempt to push back; online backlash and podcast discourse
• 33:46–36:36: Arrest of Momeni; police and DA clarify crime’s true circumstances
• 36:36–38:02: Aftermath; public reckoning with a much more complicated reality

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5. Tone and Takeaways

The episode maintains a thoughtful, unsensational tone—foregrounding both the intimate grief of Lee’s family and the broader questions around urban fear, tech power, and the politics of public safety. It sharply critiques how rumor and political opportunism can overtake tragedy, distorting reality before facts emerge. The show ends by previewing deeper explorations into the overlapping worlds of tech, wealth, and risk that framed Lee’s life and death.

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6. Conclusion

In the words of Police Chief Bill Scott (36:16): “Most people who commit homicides know the people that they kill.”
The true nature of Bob Lee’s murder—far removed from initial speculations—emerges as more details come to light. This first installment reveals how a personal tragedy became a national narrative, raising provocative questions about how cities, crime, and power are discussed in modern America.

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End of Episode 1 Summary

Transcript

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[Krista Lee]

Bloomberg Audio Studios Podcasts Radio News

[911 Operator]

Tuesday San Francisco what's the exact.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

It's April 4, 2023.

[911 Operator]

Where are you?

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

The 911 call comes in at 2:34 in the morning from near downtown San Francisco.

[911 Operator]

Help. Sir, hello? Where are you?

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

The caller sounds stunned. He doesn't say his name. He just keeps repeating, help. Help.

[911 Operator]

Until he says, I know you can hear me, sir. Where are you?

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

Somebody stabbed me.

[911 Operator]

Where are you?

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

After a minute or so, the caller starts gasping for breath.

[911 Operator]

I have help going to you, sir. Where are you?

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

The 911 operator tries to get more information out of him without much luck.

[911 Operator]

Are you outside or inside? Listen to my questions. I know you can hear me. Where are you? Please help. Okay, you're on the street outside. I'm.

[Conservative Commentator]

Wait one sec. I'm at.

[911 Operator]

I need to go to hospital.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

Slowly, he starts struggling for energy.

[911 Operator]

23 seconds.

[Conservative Commentator]

Help.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

Until three minutes in he goes quiet.

[911 Operator]

02, 30, sir, and 53 seconds, the police arrive.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

Officer Drew Jackson is the first on the scene.

[Police Officer Drew Jackson]

Hey. Hey, it's the policeman. It's the police.

[911 Operator]

Yeah, the police is there for you. Can you see that?

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

This recording is from his body camera.

[Police Officer Drew Jackson]

We're here in front of 403 main. Hey, it's the police. Hey, who did this to you?

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

The video, I should say, is awful. You can see Officer Jackson come upon this body collapsed on the sidewalk. It's a man. He looks completely helpless. He's gone pale and is struggling to breathe.

[Police Officer Drew Jackson]

Hey, my friend.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

Officer Jackson pulls up the victim's shirt to reveal stab wounds and blood on his chest.

[Conservative Commentator]

Oh.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

He starts cutting off the victim's clothes.

[Police Officer Drew Jackson]

Hey, get the med kit, please. I know, but he's not. He's not doing too hot.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

A few hours later, the man would be pronounced dead of multiple stab wounds to the chest and heart. The police don't know it yet, but the victim is Bob Lee, a successful tech executive and programmer who had a hand in creating many popular tech products. He worked at Google on the Android phone. He was CTO of Square the payment company. And he founded Cash App, an incredibly popular tool for sending or receiving money via smartphone. He was respected and well liked in the tech industry. His death would send shockwaves through the community. What happened following this moment was unlike anything I've ever seen. In San Francisco, it took nine days for the police to arrest a suspect. In those nine days, very little was even said about the investigation. And so rumors, fear and misinformation rushed in to fill the void. Online speculation turned Bob Lee's death into something else, into a narrative, a story about San Francisco and its decline. At first, there were some prominent figures in tech who thought that Bob's murder was the manifestation of all that was wrong with with the city, a famously progressive place that had crumbled into lawlessness, crushed by its own liberal policies. To them, Bob Lee's death became a symbol of what came to be known as the San Francisco Doom Loop. Leaders in the tech industry started calling for change. They placed the blame for Bob's death at the feet of the city's politicians. San Francisco was among the first major cities where there were calls for a return to law and order while flaunting the actual crime statistics. But it would not be the last. The Trump administration is also increasing the pressure on Minnesota. Thousands of immigration agents were sent to the Twin Cities. Trump administration is deploying an additional 2,000 National Guard troops to Los Angeles amid his effort to deploy the National Guard

[Dave Rubin]

to cities like Portland, Portland and Chicago.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

In the years since Bob Lee's death, President Trump would deploy federal troops to several cities with Democratic leadership.

[Conservative Commentator]

I don't like being up here talking about how unsafe and how dirty and disgusting this once beautiful capital was.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

He would argue that crime was, quote, out of control and that these cities were burning down, that the streets were in crisis. And for anyone living in San Francisco, this kind of language might sound pretty familiar. The San Francisco Doom Loop was only the first chapter of how Bob Lee's death was spun. After that, when details of Bob Lee's personal life started being reported out in the press, a new story started to emerge. Bob was held up as an example of the tech industry's excessive party scene, replete with sex, drugs and house music. What was the real story? Why was Bob Lee killed? And who really was to blame? The city? The industry, or something else entirely? I'm sean wen. This is foundering the killing of bob lee.

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[Krista Lee]

I should look up with our last text message.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

Hold on, let me I first met Bob Lee's former wife, Krista Lee, at her family home in Marin County. She moved there after she and Bob separated while he stayed in the penthouse apartment in San Francisco. She still lives there with their kids and her partner.

[Krista Lee]

Okay, so this was on April 3rd at 8:06pm how are you feeling? Hanging with Beau in the city and I messaged back, hey sexy boys, I'm in bed. Not suitable for public eye. I feel like crap. Like just leave me alone. Oh feel better babe. We'll hit you up tomorrow. And that was the last message that I heard from him.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

Krista and Bob met when they were both 22 years old. They became adults together and raised kids. They divorced in 2018 after a 16 year relationship, but they stayed close. Not just we have kids close, but we still party together close. They had a shared family group text and were in constant touch.

[Krista Lee]

He'll send a message on our family thread, you know. Love you guys. See you soon. He was always in communication with our family.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

It was the morning of April 4th. Bob had moved to Miami a few months before all of this, but he was back in town for a work trip and to see his daughter's school play. Krista had seen him the night before but hadn't heard from him all morning. She was in the car with her daughter.

[Krista Lee]

I was driving and I said do me a favor and check Dad's location for me. Something's not right.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

Bob's phone showed that he was at the police station. After Krista dropped her daughter off at

[Krista Lee]

school, she texted him April 4, 9:49am Are you in jail? Question mark? Question mark I got multiple calls at 6am from Zuckerberg General Hospital. No message and When I called back, they said it was probably just auto update confirmation for an appointment, but I don't have appointments there. Then I had Scout double check your location. It shows you at the police station.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

She didn't hear back. A few hours passed.

[Krista Lee]

We were out back having lunch and I tried to call him again. It was going right to voicemail. I'm like, this isn't right. I've got a weird feeling. Shortly after that, that's when our friend Ali called me and said, babes, have you talked to Bob this morning?

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

Ali is a close friend of Bob's.

[Krista Lee]

He goes, I don't want to alarm you, but it shows his location at the police station. And of course, then I kind of giggled to myself, like, how many people have your location, honey? Ali was like, you know, I'm in the area. I'm going to go see what's going on. Like, did he get beat up? Did something happen? The, I guess, receptionist at the police station said, you know, the person matching this description was taken to the hospital. My heart dropped. And I mean, we left the house within two seconds of that and went down there. And Ali said, I'm on my way there right now. And of course the entire drive we're thinking, okay, what happened? What, damn it, Bob, what did you do? Or even worse, did he get attacked by someone? What's going on here? Nothing made sense.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

Christa arrived at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital with her partner, Jeremy.

[Krista Lee]

I walked up, I gave them my id, and the woman said, oh, okay, let's take you back to this private waiting room. I'm thinking, what the fuck is going on here? And then maybe about five minutes passed and it's just kind of a. We're kind of making little jokes here and there, like, what is going on with Bob? Shortly after that, a nurse and the attending doctor came into the waiting room and said, are you the wife of Bob Lee's former wife, Krista Lee? And he's like, I'm so sorry to inform you, but we did everything we could, but we couldn't save Bob. I almost passed out. This flush went over me and it was like I couldn't even hear what he was saying anymore. It was just all of a sudden, you know, ears are deaf. And I'm listening to this person try to tell me, and they don't even say his name. They keep saying a man matching his description. And I was like, what the fuck? What is going on here? And I'm looking at Jeremy and I couldn't even make a tear I couldn't catch my breath and they wanted me to stick around. They wanted me to talk to the medical examiner, all this other stuff. And it's like the only thing I could think of was I have to go home. My kids just got out of school, they're at the house. I have to go home now. I have to tell my children that their father was stabbed to death.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

Krista made the hour long drive back to her house. She pulled in the driveway.

[Krista Lee]

I just kind of sat in the car looking out the window and hoping that I was going to get a call saying, oops, wrong guy. Never mind, it was some other blonde dude.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

When that call didn't come, she went inside to see her kids.

[Krista Lee]

So I walked upstairs to their rooms and said, I need to tell you that something happened to dad last night and he was taken to the hospital and dad passed away early this morning. Like I didn't really know how to express to my children, like what words that you're supposed to use. And I just remember looking at scout, who's our 15 year old, she's got the big Disney princess eyes where they just welled up in tears. So I'm laying there with both, like all with, with my children and not really making sense of it all, but just feeling pain. Absolute pain.

[Police Officer Drew Jackson]

Sorry.

[Krista Lee]

Within minutes I received calls from dozens of people. Is it real? I'm like, as far as I know, I think so, yeah. And then shortly after that, one of our best friends called and said, I just saw on the news and at that point in time, my heart shattered. I'm like, how the. Is this already on the news? Thank you, Reina. 701. In the breaking news, a tech executive is dead. He was stabbed in San Francisco south of Market Street.

[Conservative Commentator]

Yeah.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

The latest reports have identified the victim as Bob Lee, the founder of Cash App.

[Krista Lee]

Someone out there has already run to in the media saying, you know, Cash App founder Bob Lee stabbed to death.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

He's widely known as the founder of Cash App, a popular mobile payment service.

[Police Officer Drew Jackson]

He is a giant in the tech field.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

His death certainly sending shockwaves through the tech community.

[Krista Lee]

Here I was on the phone with my father and, and I started crying. I'm like, dad, I gotta go. Bob's on the news.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

Police officers rushed out there, but by

[Police Officer Drew Jackson]

the time they got there, the killer or killers were long gone.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

The initial wave of news stories are pretty bare bones. They mention Bob's name and the fact that he was killed, but they don't mention a suspect or a weapon. Then the story changes. At 8:01pm the night of April 4, only 18 hours after Bob was stabbed, a retired MMA fighter named Jake Shields goes on Twitter and posts, quote, I just found out that my good friend was killed last night while walking in San Francisco. He was in the good part of town and appears to have been targeted in a random mugging attack. Fuck San Francisco. Nowadays, Jake is a podcast host. He's interviewed Holocaust deniers and white nationalists, but at the time, he was simply a semi famous guy on Twitter. Soon more voices join in, many identifying as venture capitalists and tech founders. We've trimmed these tweets for length. RIP razybob this is fucking horrific. Fuck you SF politicians. Fuck you. Can we please stand up and completely purge SF politics now and start over? How many more of these are we gonna see? Another one reads, Chesa Boudin and the criminal loving city council that enabled him and a lawless SF for years have Bob's literal blood on their hands. This last tweet was referencing Chesa Boudin, a progressive DA who ran on policies like bail reform and reducing the prison population. He was removed from office after a very contentious recall vote. By the time Bob was killed, members of the tech industry had been rallying for months around the message that crime in San Francisco was out of control, and now one of their own was dead. That's when the richest man in the world chimes in, taking this story to a whole new level of infamy. At 2:27am, Elon Musk tweets, very sorry to hear that. Many people I know have been severely assaulted. Violent crime in San Francisco is horrific, and even if attackers are caught, they are often released immediately. Is the city taking stronger action to incarcerate repeat offenders? RookJenkins SF so I woke up, I

[Brooke Jenkins]

remember early in the morning to that tweet already being in my inbox.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

That's Brooke Jenkins, the current DA of San Francisco. She was appointed after Chesa Boudin was recalled.

[Brooke Jenkins]

And me having to, you know, out of the fog of waking up, realize what exactly I was looking at, and that it was in fact Elon Musk who had tagged me in this tweet about this case.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

Were you surprised he even knew who you were?

[Brooke Jenkins]

Oh, absolutely. I was shocked that he knew my name at all. I think about 6 million people saw it within 24 hours. And so the flood of media interest began almost right away.

[Conservative Commentator]

All right, here's a horrible story. Then we'll talk about Trump.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

The next morning, things move beyond the walls of Twitter when conservative YouTubers take up the story.

[Conservative Commentator]

Tech executive Bob Lee, founder of Cash app, was stabbed to death in San Francisco on the 300 block of Main Street.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

This is the late Scott Adams, creator of Dilbert.

[Conservative Commentator]

Now, this caught my attention not only because it was a horrible tragedy, but this is the same block that I

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

was attacked with a knife two months before this. Dilbert was dropped by major newspapers all over the country. When Adams made racist statements about black people, he became a YouTuber commenting on the news of the day.

[Conservative Commentator]

So in the 80s, I was robbed twice at gunpoint while I was a bank teller in downtown San Francisco.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

He then goes on to suggest that cities are done for.

[Conservative Commentator]

I tend to think that cities are dead. I think they're dead. I think the the next time the cities will be alive is when robots rebuild them. That could be a while. All right, let's talk about Trump's arraignment.

[Police Officer Drew Jackson]

Clearly, what's happening in San Francisco is political.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

This is Luke Rudkowski, a prominent 911 truther and an Alex Jones acolyte.

[Police Officer Drew Jackson]

The latest high profile incident that happened in San Francisco happened where a major tech executive and the founder of Cash app, Bob Lee was viciously attacked in the middle of the night and then lost his life at the age of 43.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

News of Lee's death caught the attention of many commentators, from those on the fringe to those who are increasingly mainstream.

[Dave Rubin]

I'm Dave Rubin. This is the Rubin Report. It's April 6, 2023. We're live streaming on Rumble, YouTube and Locals.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

Dave Rubin is a conservative YouTuber. His channel has almost 3 million subscribers.

[Dave Rubin]

And it's not just that they're pushing all of the gender stuff and the race stuff and that they lied about COVID and everything else. It's that there is also an unbelievable amount of crime happening in blue cities right now. You know it, we cover it all the time. But the worst of the worst, as you guys know, is San Francisco. San Francisco has completely collapsed. Elon Musk's comments are completely right. The amount of security he has to have at the Twitter offices, which is in the midst of a zombie apocalypse.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

And then Rubin goes on to connect this to the city's political leaders.

[Dave Rubin]

Why is it that Democrat cities look like that? If you can find Republican led cities that look like that, please send me the video and I will show it and I will go after the Republican mayor in those cities that's doing it.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

It's worth pausing here to ask, where does San Francisco's reputation as a crime ridden hellhole come from? The Data show that all reported crime in San Francisco is at a 20 year low. During those early years of the pandemic, crime was also trending down overall, according to SFPD data. The exceptions that stand out include car thefts, burglaries, and homicides, all of which increased a little. But the homicide rate is still among the lowest of major Cities in the US in 2023, the year Bob Lee was killed, he was one of only 55 homicides. But San Francisco suffers from a persistent gap between what the data show and how people feel. This has prompted questions about how crime data is gathered, and some prominent tech voices have suggested throwing out the stats altogether. This topic is kind of a minefield, and many people who are much more knowledgeable than I am have made a go at it. But what I want to get at is a feeling, a disconnect between the data and people's experiences. I remember not long after I moved here, about a decade ago, I was crossing the street and I saw a man lying face down right where the crosswalk met the sidewalk. So to reach the sidewalk you had to step over his body. And that's what everyone at this intersection did, including me. We walked right past him, not know if he was alive or dead. While this kind of human suffering is not unique to San Francisco, there's something about it here that just feels different. It's more casual, more in your face, in your daily life, on your way to work, on your way to dinner, on a walk, to pick up groceries. You might see someone shooting up at the BART station, or sitting on the sidewalk with open sores on their legs, or having a mental health episode in the middle of traffic. And most longtime San Franciscans would tell you, unfortunately, that's not new. There's research that shows that worrying about crime can become a chronic emotional state that shapes how people see the world around. It can sow anxiety and mistrust even when crime rates are stable or falling. The research also shows that people who worry more about crime also tend to see common nuisances as threatening things like noisy neighbors, litter, graffiti, or just visible groups of teenagers hanging out. To them, these are signs of social decline. Crime during and immediately after Covid was a nationwide conversation, but San Francisco especially was a hot topic. Comedian Dave Chappelle was not the usual jokes and giggles during a surprise show last week, instead going off about San Francisco's high crime and rampant homelessness. Bob Lee was killed during a moment when San Francisco had become a national punching bag based on a reputation that wasn't completely Inaccurate. The comedian asking the audience, quote, what the blank happened to this place?

[Krista Lee]

He didn't say blank. Saying the whole city was now the Tenderloin. As a district notorious for crime, homelessness, drug problems.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis flew in just to dump on the city for a campaign spot.

[Dave Rubin]

We're here in the once great city of San Francisco. We came in here and we saw people defecating on the street. We saw people using heroin, we saw people smoking crack cocaine. And you look around, the city is not vibrant anymore. It's really collapsed because of leftist policies.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

After the break, the weight of this national scrutiny comes down on a few local politicians. We'll be right back.

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[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

By Wednesday night, less than 48 hours after Bob was killed, city officials could see the narrative spinning out of control.

[Kevin Benedicto]

I learned about Bob Lee's murder in the same way that most people did, just seeing coverage from the media and on social media.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

This is Kevin Benedicto, a San Francisco police commissioner.

[Kevin Benedicto]

What you saw right away was people jumping to conclusions, blaming the unhoused, blaming open air drug markets.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

In San Francisco, a police commissioner is not the city's top cop the way it is in New York or in Batman. Instead, the commission is like a civilian advisory board that's meant to oversee police misconduct. It's basically a volunteer gig. Bob Lee happened to die the night before a routine police commission meeting, which would be broadcast to the public. So before the meeting starts, Benedicto wants to talk to the city police chief, a guy named Bill Scott.

[Kevin Benedicto]

One reason why I wanted to speak to the chief of police before the commission meeting was to ask if there was any evidence that this was linked to open air drug markets. If there was any evidence that this was connected to any unhoused individuals or anyone in a mental health crisis. And at that point, the answer was no. There was nothing that connected to those things. And all the evidence pointed to that not being the case. What really, I think most frustrated and really disgusted me was what seemed to me an attempt to weaponize this tragedy to advance an existing political agenda and to advance political narratives about the state of San Francisco. When we were less than 24 hours, when the investigation was still in its early stages, and there wasn't really any evidence to suggest any of those things, and all the sort of statistical data suggested really quite the opposite.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

At the commission meeting that night, Benedicto decides to make a statement about Bob Lee.

[Kevin Benedicto]

I do feel compelled to comment on what we're seeing. I do feel like some people out there on the media and social media that are exploiting this horrific incident for political gain.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

Like most government commission meetings, this one was sparsely attended, so he thinks he's speaking to a small group of people.

[Kevin Benedicto]

So much of the coverage in this short amount of time has been a significant amount of misrepresenting facts of fear mongering and of trying to exploit this tragedy. The thrust of my statement was really wait and see. We don't know all the facts. The department will update the public and the commission when we do and would discourage people from reading the fear mongering and the politicization and things on Twitter, including things by the CEO of Twitter. So I got home, I went to bed and woke up to dozens, maybe over a hundred negative responses and mentions directly in emails, including threats.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

Police commission meetings are taped. And unbeknownst to Benedicto, his comments were cut into a short video clip and tweeted out by a local news outlet called the San Francisco Standard.

[Kevin Benedicto]

It had gotten, I think, upwards of 1 or 2 million views. I'd since joked, I watched my remarks back to make sure that I didn't confess to the murder because why else would someone be threatening me and threatening my family? I had one that said, I hope your mom gets stabbed. And let's see if you say we should wait and see when it's your mom that gets stabbed.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

One of the people to jump on him was Jason Calacanis, a prominent venture capitalist. He tweeted in all caps and with minimal punctuation, these are the lunatics running San Francisco. Evil, incompetent fools and grifters who accomplish nothing except enabling rampant violence. Vote them out.

[Kevin Benedicto]

I really do feel empathy for their immediate fear and anxiety when there's violence that strikes into our community, particularly if it's sort of a subset of a community that you belong to. You know, San Francisco is home to many tech companies and many tech workers. And so to feel that anxiety, I totally empathize that. But it really felt quite distasteful to be sort of jumping to conclusions.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

Benedicto's empathy was not necessarily returned. Jason Calacanis, the guy who called Kevin Benedicto an evil, incompetent fool, is one of the four hosts of the all in podcast. The show has nearly 900,000 subscribers on YouTube. And I want to talk about all in for a moment specifically because of who those hosts are. All four are powerful tech leaders. All four are venture capitalists with connections to PayPal, Facebook and Uber, among other companies. They are powerful businessmen who've built up a very successful podcast. Also, they've been some of the loudest critics of San Francisco politics since 2020. Here's Calacanis.

[Jason Calacanis]

Politicians are sending their thoughts and prayers, but obviously San Francisco is still very dangerous place, it seems.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

The next voice is a guy named David Friedberg.

[Jason Calacanis]

I used to live two blocks from where the event happened. I'll zoom out. Where is it? Freidberg? Is it a bad place? It's in SOMA at Rincon Center. Is it part of all that drug craziness? No, it's just a nice area. Look, here's the thing. If you park at a parking meter in San Francisco for eight minutes too long, you get a 60 to $100 parking ticket, and San Francisco has become an upside down town. What I mean by that is I think that like so much of the response to concerns about the powerful having too much influence over those who are less powerful, the response has been to turn things upside down, which is to give those who are lacking in the power structure everything and to try and take everything away from those who are at the top of the power structure.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

Look, there are clearly differences between the all in guys and right wing pundits like Dave Rubin, or the outright conspiracy theorists like Luke Rudkowski. People listen to all in because the hosts are incredibly successful investors offering business insights. But there are some key parallels too. They're freely zipping between Bob Lee's murder and unrelated topics like Walgreens and parking tickets. And they also speculate quite openly.

[David Sachs]

We don't know exactly what happened yet.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

This is David Sachs, an early PayPal executive. He's probably the most prominent among the all in guys.

[David Sachs]

I think we suspect and I would bet dollars to dimes that the story is very similar to a case we had in LA recently, the Brianna Kupfer case, where a young woman was basically stabbed for no reason by a psychotic homeless person who could have been locked up, who was arrested multiple times but was not kept locked up because of this push for decarceration. But this idea of just releasing these people onto the street I just think is an outrageous abdication of responsibility by our elected officials.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

To be clear, there was nothing tying Bob Lee's death to the death of Brianna Kupfer in LA at this point. There was no suspect publicly identified and no evidence linking Bob's murder to homelessness or mental illness. It was all speculation. I should mention, in the years since David Sacks, political involvement has only deepened. But crime in San Francisco was one of the first examples of Sachs prominently wading into a political fight.

[David Sachs]

These elected leaders, they are setting loose on us a predatory criminal or psychotic element that jeopardizes our safety and makes these cities unlivable.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

David Sacks turned down my request for an interview. Jason Calacanis and David Friedberg did not respond. Meanwhile, amidst the speculation, time ticked on.

[News Reporter]

Four days later, still no arrests or suspects identified in Tuesday's tragic murder of Tech executive Bob Lee. Last night, Police Chief Bill Scott said there have been good developments. Reportedly a kitchen knife with a 4 inch blade was found in a nearby parking lot.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

One week after Bob's death, Krista Lee, Bob's former wife, was starting to pick up the pieces.

[Krista Lee]

I headed out and had to fly to Miami to do something I wished in my life I'd never have to do. And that is to go through someone's apartment and pack things up and also look for evidence. Because at this time there was no, there was no suspect.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

However, some new information had leaked to the press, including security recordings.

[News Reporter]

The Daily Mail website obtained this heartbreaking footage showing Lee staggering along the sidewalk bleeding, trying to flag down a driver or a doorman, to no avail.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

Then, nine days after the murder, but breaking news right now, it seems there might have been an arrest. The San Francisco Police Department has arrested a suspect in the murder of Tech executive Bob Lee. There was big news. The mayor, the DA and the Chief of Police held a joint press conference.

[Bill Scott]

On April 4, 2023, at approximately 2:30am, San Francisco Police officers from Southern Station responded to the 300 block of Main street for a report of a stabbing. Our homicide investigators developed information that identified the suspect as 38 year old Nima Momenti of Emeryville, California, who

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

San Francisco

[Brooke Jenkins]

police arrested 38 year old Nima Momeni.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

The suspect, another tech executive who knew Lee.

[Krista Lee]

I did not know the name. I had never heard of him before. They showed pictures of him. I looked him up. I had no idea who this person was.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

Here's police chief Bill Scott.

[Bill Scott]

We can confirm that Mr. Lee and Mr. Momini knew each other. Mr. Momini was taken into custody without incident in Emeryville, California. He was transported to the San Francisco County Jail and booked on one charge of murder.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

Scott starts by emphasizing that the two men knew each other, which is most often the case when it comes to violence. It's usually not a random act on the street.

[Bill Scott]

This is more about human nature and human behavior than it is about our city. This is not about San Francisco. It happened in San Francisco and that is unfortunate. It's even more of a tragedy that it happened at all. But this speaks to more about humans nature. Facts show and research shows that most people who commit homicides know the people that they kill.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

Then the new da, Brooke Jenkins, speaks. And somewhat surprisingly, she turns her attention to Twitter. She calls out Elon Musk.

[Brooke Jenkins]

As you already heard, Mr. Lee was murdered by somebody that he knew. While we're not going to release any additional facts at this time, I must point out that that reckless and irresponsible statements like Those contained in Mr. Musk's tweet that assumed incorrect circumstances about Mr. Lee's death served to mislead the world in their perceptions of San Francisco and also negatively impact the pursuit of justice for victims of crime as it spreads misinformation at a time when the police are trying to solve a very difficult case.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

So after nine days of speculation, Nima Momeni was arrested. He wasn't, as some had suspected, a quote, psychotic homeless person. He was an IT guy who lived in a fancy loft just across the bridge from San Francisco. Him being out on the street that night in April had nothing to do with the incarceration politics or lenient city officials. But now there were many new questions. How did Bob know Nima? Why was he hanging out with him at 2 in the morning?

[Krista Lee]

All of us were just like, who? Who is this guy?

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

These questions opened a window into a subculture that Bob inhabited. A realm of casual sex, recreational drug use, and hard partying.

[Krista Lee]

I started to piece things together and started kind of wondering. Millennium apartment. Oh, wait, I picked up Bob from some chick's apartment at the Millennium Tower once.

[Narrator (Sean Wen)]

The story that emerged after Momeni was charged was far more complicated than the initial speculation. On the next episode. Who is the supposed tech executive Nima Momeni. Why would he want to kill Bob Lee? And what was the cost of pushing a narrative that was so off the mark? That's next time on Foundering. Foundering is reported, hosted and executive produced by me, Sean Wen. Eric Masitzi's Menel produced our show. Bart Warshaw is our audio engineer. Our story editors are Joshua Brustein, Tom Giles, Ann Vanderme, and Nicole Beamster Boer. Special thanks to Peter Blumberg, Jana Knoedler and Brad Stone. Be sure to subscribe and if you like our show, leave a review. Most importantly, tell your friends. See you next time.

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