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Medical Examiner Says LES Tech CEO Was Stabbed Before Decapitated
By
David Cruz
Published Jul 16, 2020
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By
David Cruz
Published Jul 16, 2020
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The city's medical examiner says autopsy results show the tech CEO who was found beheaded in his Lower East Side apartment on Tuesday afternoon was stabbed to death before his killer used an electric saw to decapitate him.
Investigators are still trying to identify the killer of Fahim Saleh, the young CEO whose body was found in his $2 million apartment on Houston Street. The killer — who police say was dressed in a ninja-style mask and suit and tie — was reportedly unable to finish the job, after a relative of Saleh's buzzed into the building, forcing the killer to flee down a set of stairs. Saleh's head and body parts were found inside plastic bags.
The NY Post reported that surveillance video shows Saleh walking into an elevator at 1:40 p.m. on Monday with the killer, which took them to his seventh floor condo unit. After a brief exchange with the suspected killer, the elevator doors opened and Saleh was immediately tasered. Authorities, now hunting for surveillance video that can produce leads to the killer's whereabouts, believe his death could be the work of a "professional job," according to The NY Times.
Outside of 265 East Houston Street
Frank Franklin II/AP/Shutterstock
Saleh was the founder of Gokada, a motorcycle ride sharing company in Nigeria that was forced to shutter by government officials there, citing safety concerns. Police believed his death might have been the result of a business deal gone awry.
In a statement provided to the Daily Beast, Saleh's family said they could not believe he's gone.
“There are no words or actions to provide any of us comfort except the capture of the person who exhibited nothing short of evil upon our loved one,” the family stated. “Fahim is more than what you are reading. He is so much more. His brilliant and innovative mind took everyone who was a part of his world on a journey and he made sure never to leave anyone behind. Fahim found success at a nearly [young] age and built on it year after year, while remaining grounded and committed to helping others. No matter what he did, he did it while thinking of the greater good and his family. His parents and his sisters were his light and he was theirs."
His death garnered the attention of Bangladesh's minister for information and communication technology, Zunaid Ahmed Palak, who tweeted on Wednesday afternoon that "the country lost a successful entrepreneur."
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Lower East Side
Fahim Saleh
murder
David Cruz
David is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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