Man arrested for grisly murder of aspiring model in Los Angeles: Police

(LOS ANGELES) — A suspect has been arrested in the death of Maleesa Mooney, an aspiring model who was found dead in her Los Angeles apartment last year, according to police.

The 31-year-old’s body was discovered at her apartment on Sept. 12 after a welfare check had been requested for her residence, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.

Mooney was murdered inside her apartment, police said. Her body was found stuffed in a refrigerator with her arms and legs tied, according to a coroner’s report cited by Los Angeles ABC station KABC.

The suspect, 41-year-old Magnus Daniel Humphrey, was arrested in Minnesota on an unrelated federal warrant, Los Angeles police said. He was already on federal probation for narcotics offenses.

After his arrest, he was identified as a suspect in Mooney’s death, according to police.

Murder charges have been filed against Humphrey and he will be transported back to Los Angeles to face the charges, according to police.

Police would not share a possible motive and are unaware if the suspect and victim knew each other.

“She’s so kind, she’s so genuine, she’s so loving,” Mooney’s sister, Jourdin Pauline, told KABC at a rally after Maleesa’s death. “To have someone do what they did to my sister, to that caliber, is sick. It’s demented.”

ABC News’ Deena Zaru contributed to this report.

 

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