Owner of Gokada is dead

Fahim Saleh is best known in Nigeria for his work as the CEO of Gokada.

Tech entrepreneur Fahim Saleh, who is the CEO of former bike-hailing app Gokada, was on Tuesday, July 14, 2020, found dead and dismembered in his New York apartment.

Saleh’s body was found headless and dismembered inside his luxury Lower East Side apartment which he bought in 2019.

The body of the 33-year-old was discovered by his sister who became worried after not hearing from him in a day.

Fahim Saleh bought the apartment in 2019 and often showed it off on his Instagram (Instagram/Fahim Saleh)

She visited and found him headless while his body had been cut up and sorted into different plastic bags. A power saw which was still plugged in was also found in the apartment.

According to several reports, police believe they have surveillance footage of the suspect entering the building and then using the elevator.

The footage is said to show the suspect in a glove and a mask covering his face sharing the elevator with Saleh up to the seventh floor.

As the door of the elevator opened directly into Saleh’s apartment, he was seen to fall to the floor immediately from a possible gunshot.

Police, reports say, believe the murder was carried out by a professional because of how the attack happened.

"We have a torso, a head that's been removed, arms, and legs. Everything is still on the scene. We don't have a motive," New York Police Department spokesman Sgt. Carlos Nievessaid.

Gokada

Fahim Saleh founded Gokada on his adventure in Lagos, Nigeria (Instagram/Fahim Saleh)

Saleh is well known in Lagos, Nigeria where he helped launch Gokada, the former bike hailing company that has turned into delivery services following the government's ban on passenger motorcycles.

Before his investment in Nigeria, he had found success with a logistic company called Pathao in Bangladesh.

Just like Gokada, Pathao also started as a bike hailing service before it pivoted into a logistic company.

It was with his experience with Pathao in Bangladesh that Saleh went on the bike hailing adventure in Nigeria called Gokada.

“I had some money so I decided to go to Nigeria and try it out,” he once told Tech Cabal.

“I wanted to see if there was a future in motorcycle ride-sharing transport in Lagos.”

Gokada was a success in the early stages. The company raised $10.6 million in funding after four rounds and was on track to break even by January 2020 before the government ban.

Following an attempt to appeal to the government about the ban, Saleh was criticised for the way he portrayed his bikers in a video.

His murder has dominated the news cycle in New York City. ‘CUT-UP BODY FOUND IN $2M APT’ the New York Daily News splashed on their front cover of Wednesday, July, 15.

According to several reports, he had last been seen on Monday afternoon walking into his building's elevator. The New York Timesreported that there was little blood found on the scene of the murder as some effort had been made to clear up the evidence.


According to several reports, he had last been seen on Monday afternoon walking into his building's elevator. The New York Timesreported that there was little blood found on the scene of the murder as some effort had been made to clear up the evidence.