New details have emerged about the mysterious death of Maleesa Marie Mooney, the 31-year-old model who was found dead inside the refrigerator of her downtown Los Angeles apartment Sept. 12.
According to an autopsy report conducted by the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner on Sept. 17, Mooney’s death was deemed as a homicide. The chilling report, obtained by local news station KTLA, noted that after investigators responded to a welfare check requested by Mooney’s mother Sept. 12, authorities found the young beauty gagged and “wedged” inside the refrigerator of her apartment located at the Skye at Bunker Hill in the 200 block of South Figueroa Street.
Mooney’s wrists and ankles were “bound together” with “electronic cords and clothing items.” The model’s body also showed signs of “blunt force trauma” in the form of lacerations and contusions around her head, upper back, face and legs. Her left rib was also fractured, according to the coroner’s report.
Medical examiners noted that while the 31-year-old woman’s injuries were not life-threatening, evidence suggested she was “involved in a violent physical altercation before her death.”
Signs of “homicidal asphyxia,” or suffocation, were also present. However, medical examiners ruled out the possibility of strangulation, noting that there could have been other “mechanisms” used to asphyxiate the 31-year-old beauty.
Toxicology tests found traces of cocaine and alcohol in Mooney’s system. It’s unclear if either substance played a role in the young real estate agent’s death, the autopsy report noted.
Mooney was last seen on video surveillance at her apartment on Sept. 6.
As previously reported, the model’s family requested a welfare check after their iPhone text messages to her changed from blue to green. She wasn’t responding to any calls or texts.
“When a week went by, we just knew something was off,” Bailey Babb, Mooney’s cousin, told KTLA in September.
“Her messages weren’t delivering, and we knew something was up because we all have a special relationship with Maleesa.”
When authorities entered Mooney’s Los Angeles apartment, they discovered that her laptop, phone, dirty laundry and purse were missing, People reported. According to the victim’s sister, Jourdin Pauline, Mooney was two months pregnant at the time of her tragic death.
“She was super excited, and I know she really wanted a kid, and it’s something that she has always talked about,” the 24-year-old Guyanese singer told the outlet earlier this month.
A GoFundMe was launched to help the deceased pregnant model’s family as they struggle to make sense of their loved one’s heinous murder. The campaign has generated $7,180 as of Oct. 30. The investigation is still ongoing as no arrests have been made.
Mooney was found dead two days after the death of Nichole Coats, another model who was found deceased in the downtown LA area. Authorities claimed that the two cases were unrelated despite sharing stark similarities.
An autopsy report released Oct. 24 noted that Coats died from “cocaine and ethanol toxicity” on Sept. 10, according to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner.
The 32-year-old model was found dead inside her apartment near the 700 block of South Grand Avenue after family members came to check on her when she failed to return calls and texts. The last time anyone heard from Coats was Sept. 8 — when she allegedly told friends she was going on a date that evening.
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