Four years after a wealthy tech entrepreneur was found beheaded in his NYC apartment, a jury has found his assistant guilty of the killing- and stealing nearly half a million in the process.
Tyrese Haspil, 25, who was the personal assistant to successful New York tech entrepreneur Fahim Saleh, 33, was convicted of stealing $400,000 and then beheading Saleh with a saw in July 2020.
"Tyrese Haspil tragically cut Mr. Saleh's life short-a man who came from a close-knit immigrant family and followed his passions to become a successful entrepreneur," Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said on Monday, adding that he hopes, "the accountability delivered by today's verdict can provide a measure of comfort to Mr. Saleh's loved ones as they continue to mourn his loss."
But it was really the series of chilling web searches that really drew attention to the former personal assistant.
Haspil's search history showed that he had looked up "Murder of tech CEO in New York," "Fahim Saleh," and "Dismembered body."
He began stealing money from Saleh in the fall of 2018 as a means to purchase lavish gifts for his new girlfriend.
By December, Haspil had created a fake corporate entity and bank account where he funneled more money.
For fear of being caught, he resigned from his position as Saleh's assistant in May 2019. However, he continued to steal money in increasingly large amounts following his departure.
In January 2020, his fear became reality when Saleh confronted Haspil over a $35,000 debt.
The CEO offered to settle the debt with Haspil with a two-year repayment plan rather than bring criminal charges against him.
Though Haspil agreed, Saleh was unaware that his former assistant had stolen far more from him in a different scheme that involved a bogus PayPal account.
Haspil began paying him back with those stolen funds even as he continued operating the scheme, eventually amassing about $400,000 in stolen funds, according to The New York Times.
It was then that Haspil found himself in over his head, grew concerned that his more lucrative theft would also be discovered, and began plotting to kill Saleh in order to keep him from testifying against him in any criminal proceedings.
That May, following meticulous planning and research, Haspil decided to set his plan in motion.
He made two more web searches-one for the anatomy of the human neck and the other for Saleh's building plans.
In June, he purchased contractor-grade trash bags, a Swiffer floor cleaning tool, and a saw, and in the morning of July 13, Haspil entered the Manhattan apartment building wearing all black and a face mask.
He followed his former boss into an elevator that directly opened into the apartment, tasered him, and fatally stabbed him.
Haspil left the apartment only to return the next day to finish the job.
As he was dismembering Saleh's body with an electric saw, Haspil briefly stopped, leaving to purchase a battery charger.
Soon after he left, Saleh's cousin arrived to check in on him and discovered the gruesome scene.
Haspil was arrested four days later at an Airbnb he had booked for his girlfriend's birthday celebration.
He is epected to be sentenced on September 10.
