Cash App creator Bob Lee moved out of San Francisco because he thought the city was 'deteriorating' shortly before he was stabbed there, friend says

• Cash App creator Bob Lee was fatally stabbed in San Francisco earlier this week.
• His friend, Jake Shields, told NewsNation that Lee had recently relocated to Miami.

Cash App creator Bob Lee moved out of San Francisco because he thought the city was "deteriorating" shortly before he was fatally stabbed, a friend told NewsNation on Wednesday.

Jake Shields, a former mixed martial arts fighter, told the outlet that he used to live in the area Lee was attacked in but ended up moving away because he didn't feel safe there anymore.

"[Lee] did comment on San Francisco deteriorating, which is why he actually had just relocated to Miami," Shields told the outlet.

'That wasn't the only reason but was a reason," Shields told Insider. "I can't remember the exact words he used, and want to be careful putting words in a dead man's mouth, but he was extremely happy about how much cleaner and safer Miami felt."

Lee died after he was stabbed while walking near Rincon Hill and the Bay Bridge early on Tuesday morning, according to an NBC Bay Area report.

Few details have emerged about the circumstances of the attack and police have yet to identify a subject or announce any arrests related to the incident.

The tech mogul had sold his multi-million dollar home in the San Francisco area in July last year, according to real estate records reviewed by The New York Post.

Insider was not able to independently verify when Lee had moved out of the city, and whether he had been in San Francisco for business or not.

Shields told NewsNation the attack was a "senseless act of violence in San Francisco," adding that the city has had "problems" for a while.

"But it's very clear to anyone that's been there for a long time that it keeps getting worse," Shields added. "People talk and say they're going to do things, but no one does anything."

Lee's death has reignited a long-running debate over crime in San Francisco.

Last year, San Francisco's violent crime rate, which includes homicides, rapes, assaults, and robberies, was 647 per 100,000 residents, according to data published by the San Francisco Police Department. This is a rise from 2020's 550, and 2021's 603, but lower than the pre-pandemic figure from 2019 of 696.

Several other of Lee's friends and colleagues have been critical of crime in the city, calling on San Francisco Mayor London Breed to take more action.

Twitter owner Elon Musk chimed into the debate as well, tweeting on Wednesday: "Many people I know have been severely assaulted. Violent crime in SF is horrific and even if attackers are caught, they are often released immediately." He did not cite any sources to back up this claim.