Aiia Maasarwe murder cops arrest man, 20, after student is brutally killed in Melbourne while FaceTiming her sister

Aiia Maasarwe was killed after getting off a tram on her way home from a gig on Tuesday night.

Her partially naked body was found by passers-by early on Wednesday near La Trobe University's Bundoora campus in the northeast of Melbourne.

Her sister heard the "utterly brutal" assault over FaceTime shortly after midnight on Wednesday morning – and detectives are said to be investigating if the tragic young woman was raped.

'RANDOM ATTACK'

A man was arrested on Friday in the Melbourne suburb of Greensborough after cops forensically tested a hat and T-shirt left at the scene of the crime, it is understood.

“The 20-year-old was arrested in Greensborough by local police working in partnership with homicide detectives about 11.20am,” police said in a statement.

Detective Inspector Andrew Stamper said it was believed to be a “random attack”.

“This was a horrendous, horrific attack inflicted on a completely innocent young woman who was a visitor to our city,” he said.

Aiia had been studying Chinese and English at Shanghai University but moved to Melbourne six months ago to study at LaTrobe University.

'SCARED OF WALK HOME'

The 21-year-old was so scared of the walk from the tram stop to her student accommodation she would call one of her sisters while walking to feel safer, a family member told The Australian.

Victoria Police released CCTV images of the student "in the hope someone saw her on the night and can help track her exact movements".

Aiia was at a comedy club in North Melbourne earlier that night and caught the 86 tram from a Bourke Street stop.

It is believed the student got off the tram in Bundoora near where her body was located, police said.

'SCREAMING HYSTERICALLY'

Detectives are said to be probing whether the young woman was followed from the tram stop, according to the Australian. 

Local media reports that one man described seeing a woman being comforted at the scene as she was "screaming hysterically" after the student's body was found.

Detectives are investigating if the young woman was raped but would not describe her injuries "out of respect" for her family. However it's claimed police said the attack was "utterly brutal".

This is an horrendous crime that has been inflicted on an innocent member of our community

She had been speaking with her sister on the phone at the time of the attack and her sister alerted authorities, Detective Inspector Andrew Stamper said.

"She heard the sound of the fall, the phone falling to the ground and heard some voices and that was it," Detective Inspector Stamper told a news briefing on Thursday.

"Out of respect to the family, we're not going into details of injuries and the nature of the assault.

"This is an horrendous crime that has been inflicted on an innocent member of our community. Our presumption is that this was a random attack and opportunistic," he said.

According to The Age, the student was wearing sandals when she was found, but her clothing appeared to be in disarray.

Distraught family members made the heartbreaking trip from Israel on Thursday to identify her body and are said to be organising to be taking her remains home.

Ms Maasarwe had been in Melbourne on a six-month study abroad programme as part of a degree at Shanghai University.

It is the second time in seven months that a young woman had been killed on her way home at night in Melbourne, which has an active night life and is popular with overseas university students.

In June, 22-year-old Eurydice Dixon was followed as she walked home from performing at a Melbourne comedy club before she was sexually assaulted and killed in a central park.

Dixon's death provoked an outpouring of grief, with more than 5,000 people attending a vigil at the park, and a wider push by police to acknowledge that women should be free to come home alone late at night and be safe.










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