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News

WeHo Man Accused Of Murdering Girlfriend With Whom He'd Just Had A Baby

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A man has been arrested after his girlfriend was found dead in their West Hollywood condo.

Police responded to the 8500 block of Holloway Drive in West Hollywood on Thursday, May 26 at about 11:30 a.m. after a mother called the West Hollywood Sheriff's Station to report that her daughter, who lived in the apartment, was missing, according to a release from the L.A. County Sheriff's Department. When deputies arrived, they heard noises coming from inside the unit, and said that one of the residents, 35-year-old Blake Leibel, was being "uncooperative." He had apparently tried to barricade him inside the apartment using furniture, according to KTLA.

Deputies ultimately forced their way inside the home and found the caller's daughter, 30-year-old Iana Kasian, dead in a bedroom from apparent blunt force trauma to the head. Deputies arrested Leibel on suspicion of murder.

Both Kasian and Leibel lived in the condo and had a child together who is now in the care of a friend of the family. The child is only four weeks old, according to CBS Los Angeles. The baby was not in the home at the time of the killing.

Sheriff's officials say that Leibel had just been arrested last week by LAPD authorities on charges of felony rape and was out on bail at the time of Kasian's murder, according to ABC 7.

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