Detectives have named a man they are working to trace after the death of a young woman at her student flat in London.
Police are looking for Maher Maaroufe, 22, who is known to travel and has links across London. He is also known to travel to Cambridgeshire. The Metropolitan police said anyone who sees Maaroufe should not approach him and call 999 immediately.
Police were called to an accommodation block in Clerkenwell for students at City, University of London at 5.10am on Saturday after emergency services received reports of an injured woman, believed to be 19.
Officers and the London ambulance service attended and found the woman suffering from serious injuries. They attempted to revive her, but she was pronounced dead at the scene at Arbour House, Sebastian Street.
No arrests have been made so far and detectives from the Met’s specialist crime command are leading the investigation.
DCI Linda Bradley said: “The woman’s family have been informed and will be supported by specialist officers in the days and months ahead. My thoughts and that of my team are with them at this terribly difficult time.
“We believe the victim is a student who was studying at City, University of London.
“Early indications so far suggest that the victim had been in a relationship with Maaroufe and that they had been together that evening.
“Urgent inquiries to locate Maaroufe are ongoing and I urge him to attend a police station immediately. Anyone who has information that can help police must do the right thing and please call us now.”
The front of Arbour House, a multi-storey block, was taped off and a section of nearby Goswell Road was closed to traffic.
Ana, 20, an international student and resident at Arbour House, was in the building when the police arrived.
“It has made me feel really uncomfortable, and reminded me that we have to take extra precautions, especially as she was a woman around my age.
“Seeing the police was scary at the beginning. We heard all the banging, the police raiding rooms to investigate on the fifth floor. I don’t actually know where they found her, but they were coming into our rooms.
“But now it feels a lot safer to have them around while they investigate.”
A spokesperson for Unite Students, which runs Arbour House, said: “As this remains an ongoing police incident, we are unable to comment on their investigation.
“Our priority at this time is the safety and wellbeing of students at Arbour House. We are working closely with the police and City, University of London.”
A spokesperson for City, University of London said: “As a university, we will do everything we can to support our students and staff and we will continue to fully support the police with their investigation. We are working closely with Unite Students who own and operate Arbour House.”
A postmortem examination is expected to take place in due course.
Anyone with information that could assist police is asked to call the incident room on 020 8358 1010. Alternatively, call 101 or tweet @MetCC and quote CAD1252/19March.
