LA model’s cause of death confounds investigators

The body of the 31-year-old model was found in her refrigerator
She was reportedly two months pregnant at the time of her death
‘This is a really big piece of us that’s gone now,’ her family said

Nancy Loo, Marc Sternfield/KTLA

Updated: Nov 3, 2023 / 05:19 PM CDT

LOS ANGELES (NewsNation) — As Los Angeles police detectives continue to investigate the apparent murder of model Maleesa Mooney, they are grappling with an anomaly from last week’s autopsy report: no clear cause of death.

Mooney, 31, had been bound, beaten, gagged and wedged inside a refrigerator inside her downtown L.A. apartment. Her body was discovered Sept. 12 when police conducted a welfare check.

In the autopsy report obtained by NewsNation affiliate KTLA last week, the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner listed the cause of death as “homicidal violence” but could not identify a specific injury that clearly took her life.

David Marcinek, LAPD’s lead detective on the case, told KTLA that he has never investigated a case where the coroner listed “homicidal violence” as the cause of death.

Mooney was last seen alive on surveillance video at her apartment complex Sept. 6, authorities said. She was reportedly two months pregnant when she died.

In an interview last month, Maleesa’s sister, Jourdin Pauline, told KTLA she was kind and loving and opened her arms to many friends.

“Maleesa has always been someone who is a peacemaker in our family, someone that’s always been the backbone, and making sure everyone’s getting together, loving on each other,” Pauline said. “So this is a really big piece of us that’s gone now.”