SF startup CEO charged with sexually abusing 3-year-old son

Zain Jaffer has pleaded not guilty to the charges, according to his lawyer. Zain Jaffer has pleaded not guilty to the charges, according to his lawyer. Image 1 of / 3 Caption Close SF startup CEO charged with sexually abusing 3-year-old son 1 / 3 Back to Gallery

Zain Jaffer, the top executive of a mobile video advertising startup in San Francisco, has been arrested and charged with assaulting and sexually abusing his 3-year-old son.

Jaffer, 29, the CEO of Vungle, was removed from his position Thursday.

He is charged with child abuse, a lewd act upon a child, attempted oral copulation with a person under 10 years old, and assault with intent to cause great bodily harm, according to San Mateo County District Attorney Stephen Wagstaffe.

Authorities also charged Jaffer with a misdemeanor count of battery upon a police officer and emergency personnel.

Prosecutors initially charged Jaffer with attempted murder but dropped the charge because there wasn’t enough evidence to prove that he intended to kill the child, Wagstaffe said.

Jaffer is due to appear in court Nov. 1.

Richard Rice, a spokesman for Vungle, confirmed Jaffer’s arrest and said the company’s board of directors placed Jaffer on an indefinite leave of absence for personal reasons.

The company released an additional statement Friday afternoon.

“These are extremely serious allegations, and we are shocked beyond words,” the company said. “While these are only preliminary charges, they are obviously so serious that it led to the immediate removal of Mr. Jaffer from any operational responsibility at the company. The company stressed that these issues had nothing to do with his former role at the company.”

Daniel Olmos, an attorney representing Jaffer, said his client pleaded not guilty and will not make any public statements.

Jaffer’s profile on LinkedIn says he previously served as CEO for two other tech firms, Mediaroots and CyberPlanet. He is a graduate of both the University of London and London Business School.

Jaffer started Vungle in 2011. The company said it employs about 200 people and generates annual revenue of about $300 million.

Crunchbase said the company has raised about $25.5 million from investors, including renowned venture capitalist Tim Draper and Sun Microsystems co-founder Scott McNealy.

“How horrible,” Draper said in an email. “I had no idea.”

Thomas Lee is a San Francisco Chronicle columnist. Email: tlee@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @ByTomLee