Warning: This article contains a recollection of crime and can be triggering to some, readers’ discretion advised.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: The LA County Department of Medical Examiner has determined that the pregnant 31-year-old model, Maleesa Mooney, died as a result of "homicidal violence" over a month after her body was discovered inside her Los Angeles residence.
Mooney was one of two models discovered dead in their apartments in the same city neighborhood just a few days apart, raising suspicions that they were also murdered.
As per KTLA, her initial cause of death had been "deferred," but "Cause A" has since been changed to "homicidal violence."
"Other significant conditions" were also listed under her cause of death, according to the case file obtained by E! News.
According to her sister, Guyanese pop sensation Jourdin Pauline, Mooney was a model and real estate agent who was two months pregnant at the time of her death.
Pauline told KTLA that she believed the reason the cause of death was recorded as "deferred" was because the victim had been assaulted so severely that it was hard to identify the exact cause of death.
She said, "I can’t imagine what my sister went through and it pains me to even think about it."
Maleesa Mooney had stopped returning calls for a week
According to the Los Angeles Police Department, officers were summoned to check on Maleesa Mooney's welfare at the residence in the 200 block of South Figueroa Street at about 3.54 pm on September 12, when she was discovered dead.
Bailey Bobb, a relative, claimed that she had unexpectedly stopped returning calls for a week, which concerned her family.
In September, Bobb said, "When a week went by, we just knew something was off. Her messages weren't delivering and we knew something was up because we all have a special relationship with Maleesa," to KTLA.
During that time, Mooney's sister, Jourdin Pauline, stated, "It’s honestly so stressful. I have thousands and thousands of scenarios in my head of what could have happened because we don’t know."
She expressed her frustration over the fact that no arrests have been made and the police investigation is still ongoing because she doesn't know who killed her sister.
Mooney's bereaved family members have told KTLA that authorities have not disclosed much about the investigation, which has not yet resulted in an arrest, and they are frantically trying to find answers about how she died.
Nichole Coats was found dead in her apartment on September 10
A second model, Nichole "Nikki" Coats, 22, was sadly found dead in her residence on South Grand Avenue two days prior to the discovery of Maleesa Mooney's body, according to the LAPD.
Furthermore, the two women were discovered within three miles of one another.
Police have stated that there is no evidence to imply a connection between the killings, despite the community's fears that a serial killer might be on the loose due to the similarities in the women's jobs and their vicinity, as per the New York Post.
On Thursday, October 5, Nichole's mother, Sharon Coats, told the LA Times that she was "angry" with the police for ruling out the possibility of murder and not looking into the killing as a homicide.
She claimed to have seen her daughter two days before she died. Therefore the medical examiner's claim that Nichole had been dead for three to five days before her body was discovered was, in her words, "impossible."
Nichole's cause of death is now classified under "deferred" in the "Cause A" category. Her autopsy has been finished, and RadarOnline confirms that her body has been released.
Exclusive information obtained by the outlet revealed a leaflet encouraging women to "stay safe" when out on dates or participating in local photo sessions by sharing their whereabouts with friends.
