Momeni, 42, was convicted of second-degree murder in December 2024 after a jury found that he stabbed Lee three times with a kitchen knife on a downtown San Francisco street. He has been held in custody since his arrest nine days after the killing.

Before imposing the sentence, San Francisco Superior Court Judge Alexandra Gordon denied Momeni's motion for a new trial. His attorneys have said they intend to appeal.

Lee's family members addressed the court, describing the loss of a father, brother and friend. "No sentence brings back Bob … there will always be a piece missing," Lee's brother Oliver Lee said, according to multiple media reports. "And Nima Momeni will always be the man who tried to take Bob's light out of this world. His light is still here."

Lee's 18-year-old daughter, Scout Lee, also spoke. "You did not just end his life, you ended an entire future built around a man," she told Momeni, according to media reports.

Momeni, wearing an orange jail jumpsuit, maintained that he acted in self-defense and told Lee's family he recognized their loss. "Unfortunately, we have completely different understandings of what transpired," he said.

Momeni's mother, Mahnaz Tayarani, offered condolences to Lee's family while asking the judge to consider her son as a whole person.

The case began in the early morning hours of April 4, 2023, when Lee was stabbed near the foot of the Bay Bridge. Lee, 43, founded Cash App and had been an executive at Square and MobileCoin. His death initially prompted widespread speculation about random violence in San Francisco, including comments from prominent technology figures about public safety in the city.

The circumstances shifted significantly after Momeni was arrested. Investigators determined that Lee and Momeni knew each other and that the killing followed a personal dispute involving Momeni's sister, Khazar Momeni.

At trial, prosecutors argued that Momeni confronted Lee over an alleged sexual assault involving his sister and then stabbed him. The defense argued that Lee attacked Momeni first and that the stabbing was in self-defense.

Both sides agreed that the two men left Khazar Momeni's Millennium Tower apartment together in Momeni's BMW and ended up on a darkened block near Main and Harrison streets. Surveillance footage showed the two men outside the vehicle shortly before Lee walked away wounded and Momeni drove off.

Prosecutors said Momeni stabbed Lee three times, including twice in the chest. Lee managed to call 911 and seek help before collapsing.

The jury rejected Momeni's self-defense claim and found him guilty of second-degree murder. Under California law, that conviction carries a sentence of 16 years to life.

Tuesday's hearing also revisited Momeni's claims that his original trial was unfair. His new-trial motion raised allegations including ineffective assistance by his former attorneys and misconduct involving the prosecution and jury. Gordon rejected those claims.