The assistant who allegedly beheaded his boss, a tech entrepreneur, in his multimillion-dollar Manhattan apartment did so in what prosecutors say was a crime of passion.
Tyrese Haspil, 25, appeared in Manhattan Supreme Court charged with murder for the killing of Fahim Saleh on July 13, 2020.
Saleh, 33, was allegedly dismembered by his executive assistant Haspil, who stole $400,000 from the businessman in the years before his death.
Haspil was allegedly so desperate to keep the robbery a secret from his then-French girlfriend, Marine Chaveuz, fearing she would break up with him if she found out, that prosecutors allege he felt he had no choice but to kill his boss.
Saleh’s limbless body was found in his $2.4 million luxury Lower East Side apartment in July 2020.
Tyrese Haspil smiles broadly in Manhattan Supreme Court as the trial for the murder of tech entrepreneur Fahim Saleh begins.
Tech entrepreneur Fahim Saleh (pictured), who was murdered and beheaded in his New York apartment in July 2020 and was worth about $6 million when he died.
Saleh’s limbless body was found in his $2.4 million luxury apartment on the Lower East Side, where he had a $1.8 million mortgage.
The tech CEO founded Nigerian motorcycle ride-sharing company Gokada.
Haspil allegedly forced his way into Saleh’s apartment, where he first Tasered him and then stabbed him to death.
His defense attorney, Sam Roberts, told jurors that Haspil suffered from “an extreme emotional disorder,” which drove him to kill.
Haspil has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder charges that carry a mandatory minimum sentence of 20 years to life in prison if convicted.
If the jury finds him guilty of involuntary manslaughter due to his “emotional disturbance” defense, he could receive a lighter sentence of between five and 25 years.
Fearing that his girlfriend would leave him, Haspil discovered that the only suitable options were “suicide or homicide.”
Saleh initially caught Haspil upon learning that he had initially stolen $90,000, but decided not to press charges after seeing the man as his protégé.
Instead, he allowed him to pay him back through a payment plan, but Haspil continued to steal from Saleh’s company using a PayPal account. Once again he was discovered.
So Haspil allegedly decided to play Saleh’s murder and get away with it.
“During this period of time, he was planning not only to commit murder but to get away with it… To cover it up and how to erase his debt and prevent Fahim Saleh from testifying in a criminal trial,” said Manhattan Deputy District Attorney Linda Ford. she told the court.
Tyrese Haspil smiles as he enters Manhattan Supreme Court as he goes on trial for murder
Police left the building on July 14, 2020. They found Saleh’s limbs in trash bags.
Police found Saleh’s limbless body inside his apartment in the luxury Lower East Side building. Shown above is an apartment in the building.
Prosecutors say Saleh was first shot with a Taser and then stabbed several times before being dismembered.
Prosecutors say Haspil, pictured, had been stealing money from his boss for years and continued to do so in the days after his death.
Prosecutors described finding a Makita saw, wrecking bags containing body parts, limbs and a Home Depot receipt inside Saleh’s home.
They say that over the course of three years, Haspil stole from Saleh in PayPal and Intuit transfers, and that he continued transferring money to himself even four days after Saleh died.
Detectives began investigating Haspil after finding text messages in which Saleh accused Haspil of stealing the money, according to police sources.
Saleh was attacked with a Taser and then stabbed several times before being dismembered, police said.
Surveillance footage from inside the 265 East Houston apartment building showed Saleh was followed to the elevator by a man, believed to be Haspil, who was wearing a black suit and a mask.
Police claimed Haspil, photographed during his arrest in July 2020, was stealing money from Saleh and took more than $400,000 between 2017 and July 2020.
Investigators say Saleh, who was wearing shorts and a T-shirt, appeared suspicious when the masked man fiddled with the elevator, which requires the use of a key fob to operate.
Footage shows the victim collapsing to the floor as the elevator doors opened directly into Saleh’s full-floor apartment. The elevator doors then closed, obscuring the camera’s view of what happened next.
Haspil’s credit card was allegedly used after the murder to purchase a power saw and cleaning supplies at Home Depot.
The card was also apparently used to pay for travel to and from Saleh’s apartment.
After the murder, Haspil vacuumed, but his cleaning was not good enough and he missed a single “anti-criminal disc” identification tag, which was recovered at the scene.
The disk contained a unique number that matched the Taser Haspil ordered to his Brooklyn address a month before the murder, prosecutors explained.
When police arrived at the scene, Saleh’s torso was found in a corner of his living room and his head, arms and legs had been separated into plastic bags.
An electric saw still plugged in, a vacuum cleaner and cleaning products were found nearby.
When the alleged killer returned the next day to clean up, police believe he may have been interrupted by Saleh’s cousin, who stopped by to check on him, having not heard from him for several days.
Saleh was born to Bangladeshi parents in Saudi Arabia before moving to the United States.
His cousin likely pressed the doorbell to Saleh’s apartment before entering the building, alerting the killer and forcing him to abandon his efforts to dispose of the remains.
The killer is believed to have fled the building down a fire escape while his victim’s cousin was riding the elevator, police said.
Police sources said they initially believed the murder was financially motivated and was likely the fatal outcome of a sour deal.
Prior to the personal assistant’s arrest, investigators had been probing Saleh’s business affairs for possible motives or suspects.
Haspil, of Elmont, New York, had worked for Saleh at his investment firm Adventure Capital.