GUILTY NY - Fahim Saleh, 33, millionaire tech entrepreneur, dismembered, Manhattan, 15 July 2020 *Arrest*

[Cryptic]

$2.5 million for what is probably a one-bedroom condo where he lives alone is tony enough for security cams, a desk man, and special coded entry. It's a new building around the corner from NYU campus and on the main drag connecting both sides of Manhattan. If it's got an elevator that drops you off inside your own apartment, you have coded/keyed access to that floor, which is very swank.

Thanks for the direct input regarding what buys what amenities in Manhattan. The collective level and breadth of knowledge on this forum is amazing.

 

[taylorss]

What a bizarre bunch of conflicting attack stories - bullet in head, multiple stab wounds, taser.

The honor killing idea is interesting but it would’ve been his family doing it in the name of family “honor.” And news reports suggest they’re nothing but shocked & devastated.

The amount of time spent in the apt made me think the poor guy was tortured for his debit card pin number or to make him try to round up ransom like the Savopoulos family.

I’ve been in lower east side apts where the elevator opens right into the living space. I think it’s a style in that area due to former warehouses being converted to apartments maybe? Do not like that layout, it does feel exposed. But the elevator essentially becomes your front door, accessible only by key - no one can go to anyone else’s apt because you can’t press the button without first keying in.

Based on this thread it sounds like the building had a lobby big enough for the murderous freak to hang out in waiting for the victim but no doorman? That’s odd, usually there isn’t useable space unless it’s attended by someone. But they’ve built so many new buildings around there so who knows anymore.

It sounds like LE has a pretty good lead - I hope and expect an arrest soon ... fingers crossed.

 

[Cryptic]

Now those foreigners with their start-ups know they've got to either pay up to the local mafia, fold or risk ending up in a body bag. I'm mentioning 'foreigners' because these mafia groups specifically call 'foreigners' out with disdain for trying to change the system while not being a part of the country.

Very well said.

Not only would the foreigner not "belong" there, but he was also not just bucking the established "system" (bad enough), but was potentially going to uproot it.

As opposed to marked taxis and established taxi companies, ride shares would be far more difficult for the indigenous mafia groups to identify and track. Thus, they would be losing a key component of their extortion income. Then also factor in that local Nigerians defying the Mafias via being a ride share operator could spread to other extortion rackets, thus depriving the Mafias of even more income.

 

[whitelilac]

If you want to get an understanding of who Saleh was up against you should watch BBC 'Law and Disorder in Lagos' by Louis Theroux. It's a whole different world in Lagos, Nigeria that has an entrenched mafia who extorts drivers and shop owners through low level 'Area Boys' that funnel the money to the top.

These foreigners with ride hailing start-ups are seen as an existential threat to what is basically a violent, entrenched mafia. These guys by the way hire assassins:
Police arrest alleged serial assassin, former NURTW boss for murder | The Guardian Nigeria News - Nigeria and World News
Now you've got this foreigner who is trying to disrupt the local mafia who is posting pictures of where he lives. Now those foreigners with their start-ups know they've got to either pay up to the local mafia, fold or risk ending up in a body bag. I'm mentioning 'foreigners' because these mafia groups specifically call 'foreigners' out with disdain for trying to change the system while not being a part of the country.

I believe this. Many years ago I was the designer of the new hospital in Abuja, and also various buildings in a steelmill township. I wasn't allowed to go to the sites as it was too dangerous for a woman. The partners who went were required to take bribe money to get in and out of the airport in Lagos (their passports were held). One of them, on taking a taxi was horrified when said taxi took him out in the middle of nowhere, and stopped. Car "broken"....when he understood money was requested, the car was magically "unbroken". Another, a couple who were on site as managers during construction, were robbed in their place, and the husband got his finger cut off because he couldn't remove his wedding ring.

It's a dangerous country...back then in the 80s and likely still is. However, I do know Nigerians here, very educated and lovely people, who themselves won't ever go back.

It's very possible that Mr. Saleh got involved in something that, notwithstanding his business brilliance, he was very naive about.

 

[SpanishInquisition]

This sounds similar to what what actually happened to Saleh (and also took place in NY), but a convicted con man tried to hire assassins to torture and kill the judge who sentenced him and was willing to pay a bonus if they gave him the decapitated head of the judge once he got out of prison:
Long Island fraudster Joseph Romano accused of hiring hitman to torture, decapitate judge and federal prosecutor
Something can both be very personal and revenge-related while also being about business. Sometimes if you want revenge bad enough murder alone won't do and you'll pay someone to go the extra mile with torture and decapitation.

 

[SpanishInquisition]

Here's more details as the NY Post article has been updated with this:
Saleh’s torso was found decapitated, all four limbs severed with surgical precision — arms at the shoulders, legs below the knees — and stuffed into plastic bags, sources said...

A source noted that when police arrived on the scene, the blood immediately around the torso hadn’t yet blackened, suggesting that Saleh, 33, had only recently been dismembered — likely within the last hour of the more than 25 hours the assassin apparently spent inside the apartment...

Surveillance video from the building lobby shows Saleh enter the elevator at about 1:40 p.m. Monday, followed closely by the suspect, who was carrying a bag, clad in all-black and hooded, yet smartly dressed, sources said.

The killer wore a “ninja-like” hood and a “dark suit, fashionable cut,” according to one source.
https://nypost.com/2020/07/15/fahim-salehs-killer-may-have-been-scared-off-by-visiting-relative/

 

[gliving]

 

[rosesfromangels]

This is certainly the stuff of nightmares.
The length of time allegedly spent in the apartment clearly suggests torture, which leads me to believe certain information was being sought.

amateur opinion and speculation

 

[taylorss]

I wonder how much they can see about the murderous freak in the videos.... for some reason I imagine him as a white guy, which makes me discount the Nigerian connection. Maybe it just seems over ambitious to travel so far, and to such a rich & overwhelming place as NY, to kill a business rival. Plus hadn’t Nigeria done the work on behalf of his rivals by banning his technology? What then would be the reason to kill him?

Someone posted a news reference earlier to a deal gone bad ... that doesn’t sound like his Nigerian company, wonder if he had something else going closer to home.

 

[dotr]

I wonder how much they can see about the murderous freak in the videos.... for some reason I imagine him as a white guy, which makes me discount the Nigerian connection. Maybe it just seems over ambitious to travel so far, and to such a rich & overwhelming place as NY, to kill a business rival. Plus hadn’t Nigeria done the work on behalf of his rivals by banning his technology? What then would be the reason to kill him?

Someone posted a news reference earlier to a deal gone bad ... that doesn’t sound like his Nigerian company, wonder if he had something else going closer to home.

Risky travel with covid and border restrictions, maybe someone local, close by?
speculation, imo.

 

[THEORETICALLY]

I wonder how much they can see about the murderous freak in the videos.... for some reason I imagine him as a white guy, which makes me discount the Nigerian connection. Maybe it just seems over ambitious to travel so far, and to such a rich & overwhelming place as NY, to kill a business rival. Plus hadn’t Nigeria done the work on behalf of his rivals by banning his technology? What then would be the reason to kill him?

Someone posted a news reference earlier to a deal gone bad ... that doesn’t sound like his Nigerian company, wonder if he had something else going closer to home.

Exactly. ... But hey, let's stop the certainty that it was a 'he'... it could also have been a 'she' perpetrator, crimes fail to et solved by narrowing the focus too early.

I often consider the process of elimination.

1)
A Nigerian revenge in NYC, at what expense and for what reason? He was already banned from the sector in question and he wasn't going to win a fight.. he had already moved on.

2)
Let's consider eliminating a plan to "disappear him for a basic reason- too many CCTV shots would tell the story of Fahim returning home and the killer wasn't "that" prepared for an evacuation otherwise he/she wouldn't have jumped out at the first sign of a visitor.

3)
Now, a professional butcher carries along an expensive saw. Would he/she not also lay out cheap plastic or something to control any potential mess? Why wait, be sloppy and have to clean and bleach?

4)
So, the sister rings a bell or so? Does she blindly proceed up the lift with out without a 'key'? She has access or how does that work? Of course you still want to buzz even if you have access as you hope to give some notice before your entrance!

5)
This guy is a techy. He may have more ways of tracking his life, time nd security than the average joe. Lets wait for further revelations.

Did he have a phone. Were there numerous missed calls. What was his internet and telephone traffic like over the last 24hours and even after the assault began?

Did he access information, send a distress signal?

6)
Lets tinker with motive?
We've talked about PrankCall, Nigeria etc but what i see silent is that he had recently invested in Columbia.

7)
A bit of icing?
A Bike hire, hailing service is really deeper than regular people think. I will chat about this in a few minutes

 

[whitelilac]

Here's more details as the NY Post article has been updated with this:
Saleh’s torso was found decapitated, all four limbs severed with surgical precision — arms at the shoulders, legs below the knees — and stuffed into plastic bags, sources said...

A source noted that when police arrived on the scene, the blood immediately around the torso hadn’t yet blackened, suggesting that Saleh, 33, had only recently been dismembered — likely within the last hour of the more than 25 hours the assassin apparently spent inside the apartment...

Surveillance video from the building lobby shows Saleh enter the elevator at about 1:40 p.m. Monday, followed closely by the suspect, who was carrying a bag, clad in all-black and hooded, yet smartly dressed, sources said.

The killer wore a “ninja-like” hood and a “dark suit, fashionable cut,” according to one source.
https://nypost.com/2020/07/15/fahim-salehs-killer-may-have-been-scared-off-by-visiting-relative/

"surgical precision"....reminds me of Jamal Khashoggi. Saleh was Saudi, at least was born and lived there. I saw that his parents were wealthy in an article.
You don't suppose there's a Saudi connection?
Revenge against the parents?
Or against Saleh......did he have Saudi loans? Was this killing a "lesson" of some sort?
Thinking aloud.
I hope LE gets to the bottom of this ghastly crime.

 

[THEORETICALLY]

Exactly. ... But hey, let's stop the certainty that it was a 'he'... it could also have been a 'she' perpetrator, crimes fail to et solved by narrowing the focus too early.

I often consider the process of elimination.

1)
A Nigerian revenge in NYC, at what expense and for what reason? He was already banned from the sector in question and he wasn't going to win a fight.. he had already moved on.

2)
Let's consider eliminating a plan to "disappear him for a basic reason- too many CCTV shots would tell the story of Fahim returning home and the killer wasn't "that" prepared for an evacuation otherwise he/she wouldn't have jumped out at the first sign of a visitor.

3)
Now, a professional butcher carries along an expensive saw. Would he/she not also lay out cheap plastic or something to control any potential mess? Why wait, be sloppy and have to clean and bleach?

4)
So, the sister rings a bell or so? Does she blindly proceed up the lift with out without a 'key'? She has access or how does that work? Of course you still want to buzz even if you have access as you hope to give some notice before your entrance!

5)
This guy is a techy. He may have more ways of tracking his life, time nd security than the average joe. Lets wait for further revelations.

Did he have a phone. Were there numerous missed calls. What was his internet and telephone traffic like over the last 24hours and even after the assault began?

Did he access information, send a distress signal?

6)
Lets tinker with motive?
We've talked about PrankCall, Nigeria etc but what i see silent is that he had recently invested in Columbia.

7)
A bit of icing?
A Bike hire, hailing service is really deeper than regular people think. I will chat about this in a few minutes

What was the killer doing for 24hours or so
What did the killer do in the 1st 6 hours...
and the next 6hours?
and after the initial 10-12 hours?
How about the final 6 hours or after spending a whole day at the apartment?

How much did the killer sit, pace, sleep, eat, use the washroom, observe the windows, doors, home cctv monitor etc?? These are little but important details and can reveal the mindset of the evil killer.

 

[rosesfromangels]

What was the killer doing for 24hours or so
What did the killer do in the 1st 6 hours...
and the next 6hours?
and after the initial 10-12 hours?
How about the final 6 hours or after spending a whole day at the apartment?

How much did the killer sit, pace, sleep, eat, use the washroom, observe the windows, doors, home cctv monitor etc?? These are little but important details and can reveal the mindset of the evil killer.

I speculate he spent his time torturing the Victim, obtaining information, then the time consuming task of dismemberment.

amateur opinion and speculation

 

[whitelilac]

Since the coroner has his body...minus "some missing parts", I would hope an autopsy can determine if there was any other damage inflicted besides the stab wounds and dismemberment. (unless stabbing alone was the means of possible torture). e.g., burns, lacerations, broken bones in his hands...etc

 

[THEORETICALLY]

I speculate he spent his time torturing the Victim, obtaining information, then the time consuming task of dismemberment.

amateur opinion and speculation

~Yes, the killer wanted something we are unaware of.
Could he have a wanted body part, could his blood have been taken?

Dismemberment, as in using a chainsaw wouldn't take longer than half an hour, so what then? He/she just sat and waited?

 

[Falling Down]

"surgical precision"....reminds me of Jamal Khashoggi. Saleh was Saudi, at least was born and lived there. I saw that his parents were wealthy in an article.
You don't suppose there's a Saudi connection?
Revenge against the parents?
Or against Saleh......did he have Saudi loans? Was this killing a "lesson" of some sort?
Thinking aloud.
I hope LE gets to the bottom of this ghastly crime.

Same here, the Khashoggi murder.

Or could he have had some kind of deep state type ties of some sort or another?

 

[rosesfromangels]

~Yes, the killer wanted something we are unaware of.
Could he have a wanted body part, could his blood have been taken?

Dismemberment, as in using a chainsaw wouldn't take longer than half an hour, so what then? He/she just sat and waited?

Per my last post - I believe the time was spent in torture and extracting info from him. I don't think the killer was harvesting body parts. He was after info. However, he may have taken the head as evidence to collect his fee.
Gruesome.

Amateur opinion and speculation

 

[swedeheart]

just thinking out loud here, but why put the body in bags if he was just planning to leave them in the apartment? could this have been a "message" to someone? ("this is what can happen to you" type of message.) could the plastic have been used to contaminate the body? also, surely his whole body wasn't going to fit in a suitcase. (unless it was a big one and saleh was small). but then how was the perp going to get the saw back out? and did he not need a key/key fob to exit? was there a virtual doorman in this building? Leave It With the (Virtual) Doorman

a few articles say they only recovered "most" of his body parts. so did he take off with some or one of the missing parts?

and i'm still trying to figure out how you live in a 2 million dollar + nyc apartment and there's no security or live/real-time surveillance? what was the perp doing downstairs? was there a lobby where you could sit and chill and not look suspicious if you weren't a resident? aren't most people still staying home bc of covid, and therefore there would have been other tenants who saw this ninja?(seems like he would look really out of place in a black suit and mask and gloves in the middle of july, but maybe he looked like a businessman.) *shudder*

this was personal. imo.

here's his twitter account. one tweet says "Have a very good feeling about 2020."

https://twitter.com/fahims

here's his youtube:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC58oTvqReFIzX-a9v_ZQFDg



...absolutely chilling.

 

[whitelilac]

^ I don't think he was planning to leave them there in the apartment. I think he was going to take the bags away (easier than an intact body), perhaps by means of both the suitcase and whatever totes or gym bags etc. belonged to Saleh, or he was going to dispose of them down the garbage chute (apts. of that cost likely have individual chutes). An intact body would not fit.

Actually there was a case, a woman, who was found deceased and stuck in a garbage chute....also in NY. She was found by maintenance after the chute was "blocked".