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Boyfriend of UC San Diego student found dead arrested

A Santa Clarita man was arrested Monday on suspicion of the strangulation death of a UC San Diego student believed to have been the suspect's boyfriend.
Boyfriend of UC San Diego student found dead arrested

SAN DIEGO (CNS) - A Santa Clarita man was arrested Monday on suspicion of the strangulation death of a UC San Diego student believed to have been the suspect's boyfriend.

Christian Ortiz, 21, was taken into custody about 3 a.m., booked on suspicion of murder and held on $1 million bail, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department.

The body of a man who appeared to have been strangled was found about 4 p.m. Sunday at a home in the 23600 block of Via Valer in Santa Clarita.

"Based on interviews and evidence at the location, it was determined that the unidentified victim died at the hands of another," said sheriff's Sgt. Aura Sierra.

Though the victim has not been officially identified, relatives told reporters at the scene that he was 20-year-old Brayan "Brian" Rodriguez, whose whereabouts had been unknown since Friday. Friends and family members had spent much of the weekend searching for him and passing out missing-person fliers.

Relatives and acquaintances of Rodriguez told news crews that Ortiz lives at the home where the body was found and that he was Rodriguez's boyfriend.

Ortiz was tentatively set to appear in court on Thursday in San Fernando, according to jail records.

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