Drug convict, 41, is arrested in Minnesota over murder of model who was found bound, beaten, gagged and wedged in a refrigerator at her Los Angeles apartment five months ago

A man has been arrested in Minnesota for the murder of Los Angeles model Maleesa Mooney, who was found dead, bound and gagged in her refrigerator.

Magnus Daniel Humphrey, 41, was arrested at his home on an unrelated federal warrant and will now be returned to California to face charges. He is on federal probation for narcotics charges.

Mooney, 31, was a model and also worked as a real estate agent at the Beverly Hills-based agency Nest Seekers. She had only moved into her new apartment for a month before she was found dead on September 12 last year, her family said.

Her family raised the alarm when they heard nothing from her. Officers entered her home and found blood under the refrigerator with her body inside, tied up with electrical cords and clothing, according to a coroner’s report.

Her body showed serious injuries and lacerations and the cause of death was determined as ‘homicidal violence’.

Investigators have not released a possible motive or said whether the suspect and victim knew each other.

The building has a resort-style pool and sundeck and a central courtyard, as well as community barbecue grills, tennis courts and a dog park.

Mooney (right) worked as a real estate agent at Beverly Hills-based agency Nest Seekers and had moved into her new home just a month before her death, her family said

The coroner’s report states that her blunt force injuries were not in themselves serious enough to have caused her death, but suggests that “she was likely involved in a violent physical altercation prior to her death.”

The report suggests she may have been asphyxiated, although no obvious signs of strangulation were observed.

The arrest comes five months after Mooney’s family informed police of their concerns.

Her family raised the alarm when their iPhone text conversations with Mooney turned from blue to green, indicating a change in Wi-Fi and data services.

Bailey Babb, Mooney’s cousin, told KTLA that the family requested a welfare check when she stopped answering her calls: “When a week went by, we just knew something was wrong.

“Her messages weren’t getting through and we knew something was going on because we all have a special relationship with Maleesa.”

Police entered her Skye apartment on Bunker Hill on September 12, just before 4pm, and found her body. She was last seen alive on CCTV on September 6.

According to the police report, on September 7, a man was seen on CCTV using her key fob to enter the elevator to her apartment with plastic bags.

Jourdin Pauline, her pop star sister who has 1.3 million followers on Instagram, said: “Maleesa has always been someone who is a peacemaker in our family, someone who has always been the backbone and makes everyone come together and love each other .

“So this is a very big part of us that’s gone now.”

Her family knew something was wrong when their iPhone text conversations with Mooney changed from blue to green — indicating a change in Wi-Fi and data services

Mooney pictured with a friend

Jourdin Pauline, her pop star sister who has 1.3 million followers on Instagram, said: “Maleesa has always been someone who is a peacemaker in our family, someone who has always been the backbone and makes everyone come together and love each other ‘

She wrote in a heartfelt tribute on social media: ‘Never in a million years did I think I would have to make this post and get justice for my only sister, my heart is crushed.

“I can’t believe you won’t be here with us anymore. You were so loving and so kind to everyone. You made sure everyone around you was too. You opened your arms to people who didn’t deserve you as a friend. you are the best thing that could happen to the lives of almost everyone you touched!’

She added: ‘This feels so surreal I keep waking up crying and thinking I’m in a bad dream. We will get justice for you, my sister. I promise you won’t be gone for nothing!’

Pauline said her sister’s iCloud had an alert that she was still online, leading her to believe her killer was trying to steal and sell her iPhone and MacBook.

The condo complex has a resort-style pool and sundeck and a central courtyard, as well as community barbecue grills, tennis courts and a dog park.