Investigators Reveal 'Step up' Actress Tricia McCauley Was Strangled to Death

Step Up actress Tricia McCauley, who was found dead in her car on Tuesday morning, will always be remembered as "a beautiful spirit."

Details have emerged regarding her killing and her autopsy reveals that she died from "ligature strangulation with blunt force trauma." Police arrested and charged Adrian Duane Johnson with first-degree murder in McCauley's death, PEOPLE reports.

Tricia's longtime friend Brian McMonagle described her "as an amazing source of life." He spoke with her hours before her disappearance on Sunday and said, "She was in good spirits."

The McCauley family could not be reached for a comment, but her brother Brian did address her death on Facebook. He wrote, "Tricia is gone."

He went on to thank her friends and "DC family" for their support and encourage them to "hang on to each other."

Another longtime friend said Tricia was "such a beautiful spirit."

Originally posted on Womanista.com.