A 20-year-old man is expected to be charged today over the death of 21-year-old Aiia Maasarwe, whose body was found near a tram stop in Melbourne's north on Wednesday.

Key points: Ms Maasarwe was killed in Bundoora as she made her way home

Ms Maasarwe was killed in Bundoora as she made her way home Police arrested a man in the neighbouring suburb of Greensborough

Police arrested a man in the neighbouring suburb of Greensborough Anti-violence advocates organised community vigils, including a "flower-only tram"

Ms Maasarwe — an Arab-Israeli exchange student who was studying at La Trobe University — was on her way home from a night out at a comedy club when she was attacked.

Her body was behind a hedge outside a nearby shopping centre in Bundoora, about 100 metres from the tram stop, which is on the Route 86 tram line.

Victoria Police said in a statement the man was arrested in the adjacent suburb of Greensborough about 11:20am on Friday.

Police arrested the man in northern suburb of Greensborough. ( ABC News )

"The arrest follows an extensive investigation into Aiia's death following the discovery of her body near Main Drive and Plenty Road in Bundoora," the statement said.

The man remains in police custody.

Students at La Trobe — where Ms Maasarwe was midway through a one-year exchange — held a vigil for her on Friday afternoon.

Another silent vigil took place on the steps of Melbourne's Parliament House in the evening, and a special tram carrying only flowers departed from there at 8:01pm.

It followed the route of her final journey to Bundoora.

Staff and students at La Trobe University attended a vigil on the Bundoora campus. ( AAP: Ellen Smith )

Her father, Saeed Maasarwe, has flown into Melbourne from China to identify his daughter's body and arrange for her return to Israel.

He also visited the crime scene, where floral tributes had been left by members of the public.

Mr Maasarwe thanked the community for its support and police for their work.

He said his daughter was an open-minded person with big opinions, who loved learning about different cultures.

"She respected all the peoples, she respected all the cultures," he said.

"She loved this city.

"I have many dreams to be with her, but I cannot now.

"I want to be with her [for] more time, but someone decide I cannot be."

Sorry, this video has expired Aiia Maasarwe's father visits memorial site

Mr Maasarwe said he had planned to visit Australia later this month to holiday with his daughter and her sister.

He said Ms Maasarwe had told him she was looking forward to visiting Sydney with him.

"I wait for her, I still wait, I don't know how long I need to wait," Mr Maasarwe said.

'An absolutely horrendous, horrific attack'

Police described Ms Maasarwe's killing as horrific, but said they would not detail her injuries out of respect to her family.

"This was an absolutely horrendous, horrific attack inflicted on a completely innocent young woman who was a visitor to our city," Detective Inspector Andrew Stamper said yesterday.

"I never knew you, but my thoughts are with you," said a message left at the site where Ms Maasarwe was found dead. ( ABC News: James Hancock )

Police had said they would "saturate" the area where Ms Maasarwe was killed until her attacker was found, in a bid to calm rising community fears about safety.

They believe she was attacked just after midnight on Wednesday morning, shortly after getting off the tram.

Ms Maasarwe was on the phone to her younger sister at the time.

"[Her sister] heard everything over the phone," their uncle Abed Kittani told the ABC.

"She heard the cars passing by and she was helpless, she couldn't do anything. She started sending her messages and there was no response.

"Instead of coming home with a diploma, she is coming back in a coffin."

Ms Maasarwe's family told the ABC she had been in Melbourne for about five months and was a clever, funny and adventurous woman with a gift for learning languages.

"We cannot believe that something like this happened in Australia, we think it's very safe there," said another uncle, Rame Maasarwe.

Ms Maasarwe's exchange to La Trobe was part of a larger business degree she was undertaking at China's Shanghai University.

Described as intelligent and gifted in learning new languages, Ms Maasarwe planned to use her degree to work alongside her father, who runs a business in Guangzhou.

Ms Maasarwe's family said she had loved her first few months of adventures in Australia, and her Instagram account shows she had immersed herself in her new home, with trips to the Grampians National Park among her most recent travels.

Her account is headlined with the words "the best is yet to come".

Sorry, this video has expired Aiia Massarwe's family are in mourning following her death

Night out ends in tragedy

Ms Maasarwe's Tuesday evening began in Melbourne's Flagstaff Gardens, at a meet-up for people keen to practice their English language skills.

"She was very friendly, knowledgeable, easy-going, and someone who knew a lot," said event organiser Arun Chandran.

"It was quite refreshing to talk to her."

Aiia Maasarwe had attended a Melbourne park meet-up to practise English on the night she was killed. ( Supplied: Arun Chandran )

CCTV footage released by police on Thursday showed her leaving comedy club The Comic's Lounge in North Melbourne later that night.

She was wearing a pale t-shirt with "Merci" written in black on the front, as well a black skirt, white shoes and a black backpack.

Friends dropped her off at a tram stop on Bourke Street in the CBD about 10:50pm, from where she boarded a route 86 tram for the lengthy trip to Bundoora.

Police believe she got off the tram where Plenty Road intersects with Main Drive, less than 100 metres from where her body was found, and was attacked around 12.10am.

A police line search that afternoon uncovered some of her belongings in a nearby park.