Suspect arrested in gruesome slaying of Bangladeshi American businessman

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Suspect Tyrese Haspil was arrested Friday morning.

The personal assistant of entrepreneur Fahim Saleh has been arrested as a suspect in the slaying of his former employer.

Officials close to the case but not authorized to discuss the case spoke on the condition of anonymity. One of them identified the suspect as 21-year-old Tyrese Haspil, who reportedly owed Saleh thousands of dollars.

Saleh, a 33-year-old Bangladeshi American, was found Tuesday (July 13) dismembered inside his luxury Manhattan condo, said the two anonymous law enforcement officials.

The same sources believe that the motive for the killing stemmed from Saleh’s having discovered that the assistant had stolen tens of thousands of dollars from him, and Saleh  had not reported the man but had set up a repayment plan, reported The New York Times.

Saleh's body was discovered Tuesday by a cousin who became worried when Saleh didn't answer his attempts to contact him. Earlier reports incorrectly identified the relative as Saleh's sister.

Autopsy reports said that Saleh was killed on Monday from multiple stab wounds. The suspect apparently returned to the residence to clean up but was interrupted when the doorbell from the lobby rang.

Video shows a man dressed in all black, believed to be the suspect, leaving the building.

FAHIM SALEH

Saleh's family issued a statement Friday: "The headlines talk about a crime we still cannot fathom," the statement said. "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."

Saleh had founded two ride-sharing services in his native Bangladesh and Nigeria.

Authorities arrested Haspil at his apartment with no incident. The N.Y. Post obtained surveillance video showing cops walking the cuffed Haspil out from the lobby of 172 Crosby Street to a squad car just Friday morning.

Investigators were apparently led to the suspect by credit card statements, Uber receipts and text messages between Saleh and Haspil, along with electronic records, which is how police found out about the alleged embezzlement.

Dismembered body identified as that of tech entrepreneur

FAHIM SALEH

ASAM NEWS

The decapitated, dismembered body of a 33-year-old male was found inside of a Lower East Side apartment in New York City, New York Post reports.

Police found the body of Fahim Saleh at the East Houston Street apartment around 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday after a cousin had requested a welfare check. Body parts were found in plastic bags. According to New York Post,  Saleh, is a venture capitalist and CEO of the Nigeria-based motorbike startup Gokada.

The Post has reported that a cousin requested a welfare check on Saleh. However, The Daily Mail says it was the victim’s sister that called police after she hadn’t heard from him for a day. She found upon his dismembered body when she went to check on him herself.

Sources told the New York Post that it looked like the killer had been interrupted when the sister rang the doorbell from the lobby. Authorities say investigators found an electric saw still plugged into an electrical outlet along with cleaning supplies.

Police also believe they have security footage of the killer, dressed in all black, entering the building with a bag and waiting for the victim to take the elevator. The recording shows the hit man following Saleh to his apartment door when he stunned the fictim with a stun gun.

Saleh was a Bangladeshi American who co-founded Pathao, a ride-hailing company in Bangladesh in 2015. Two years later, he founded Gokada, an on-demand motorbike-hailing company in Lagos, Nigeria.

In 2018, Saleh also launched the venture capital firm Adventure Capital. He invested in several transportation related start ups.

“We used to call him the Elon Musk of the developing world. He was like the Energizer Bunny,” a longtime friend told The Post.