"Dead man's identity a mystery "

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Police are hoping the public may be able to help identify a man who was found dead in central Napier earlier this week.

Police have not been able to identify the man, who is described as possibly Polynesian or Maori aged in his 50s or 60s. He was of solid build with grey receding hair and a grey goatee and is about 1.78m tall.

The man was found dead in an alleyway in central Napier on Monday morning. His death is not being treated as suspicious.

The man has two distinctive tattoos – a snake wrapped around a skull and a sword on one arm and a line of narrow squares on one hand. He was wearing a dark blue jacket, jeans and brown suede walking boots when found.

Detective Sergeant John McCarthy said police had not been able to identify the man through formal police procedures such as fingerprints, photos and missing persons. He had no identification or any other items on him when he was found.

“We are hoping that someone may know this person or at least recognise the tattoos.

Our next step is to look at forensic options such as dental records and DNA, but in the meantime we want to hear from anyone who might know who this man is. There will be a family out there missing someone so we would like to bring closure for them,” Mr McCarthy said.

Anyone with information about the man should contact Mr McGregor at Hawke’s Bay Police on 06 2113810.

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