Hillsborough Murder Suspect Posts $35 Million Bail
HILLSBOROUGH (KPIX 5) -- Murder suspect Tiffany Li posted a $35 million bail Thursday -- money raised by friends, family and business associates with ties to China.
The 31-year-old is backed by a group that raised $4 million cash and pledged $62 million in San Francisco Bay Area property. California courts require twice the bail amount if property is used instead of cash. She must remain on round-the-clock electronic monitoring.
The $35 million bail is the highest ever in San Mateo County's history, a county official said. It was based on the prosecutors fears that Li was a flight risk. She was also ordered to surrender her passport to make it difficult to flee the country.
San Mateo County District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe said, "From the beginning of the case the investigation by the sheriff's office has provided to us that she comes from a family that has many, many hundreds of millions of dollars available to them."
Li is charged with murder - and accused of conspiring with her boyfriend - Kaveh Bayat and friend - Oliver Adella to kill her ex-boyfriend Keith Green.
Greene's body found on the side of a road last year. He's the father of their two children. Li has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
"We certainly know that there was a great deal of animus between her and Keith Green our victim, over the children," Wagstaffe said. "And we believe that was one of the pieces at the core of what led to the end of the life of Keith Green."
Li's attorney Geoff Carr said, "So the property was actually put up by 15 to 20 extended family, friends, business associates, people that believe in Tiffany and think that, one she'll come to court and two, she's not guilty."
Carr was dismissive about the discussion surrounding the amount of his clients bail.
"A young man is dead who shouldn't be. We agree with that and that's the issue. The amount of money on bail is frankly ancillary," the attorney said.
Car added that Li "has no prior criminal history, she's a graduate of USF, she has a master's degree in finance, has never been in trouble about anything."
It was an emotional day for Green's friends and family as they watched the mother of his children and his accused killer take one step closer to walking out of jail.
"We kind of knew it was coming. Nothing seems right about it at all," said Angela Dunn, a family friend who told KPIX 5 Greene lived with her the last six months of his life. "Money can get you all sorts of things."
She says knowing his accused killer is about to walk of jail is difficult for everyone, especially Greene's mother.
"And she's grieving terribly. I mean, what can I tell you? It's her only child. We've seen the evidence and it's terrible," said Dunn.
Li left the San Mateo County Jail at around 2:30 p.m. and sprinted to a waiting black Cadillac Escalade.
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