The police say they have identified people who could have been involved in murdering Gurjit Singh in Dunedin on January 29, and are ruling out the possibility it was a hate crime.
Investigators told journalists on Friday it was “highly probable” there was a fight at the address but were keeping an open mind about the possible motive behind the murder.
A friend found Gurjit’s body in a pool of blood and shattered glass outside the 27-year-old’s house in the suburb of Pine Hill, with injuries police now say were most likely caused by a sharp object.
Detective Senior Sergeant Kallum Croudis today said they were taking steps "around ensuring people cannot leave New Zealand".
“We have identified some witnesses who have given us some really good time related information, which semi-inform our understanding of when things occurred,” Det Sen Sgt Croudis said.
Inquiries had suggested this was a localised incident, and police were following ‘‘strong lines of inquiry’’, he said.
The broken glass at the property was ‘‘deformed’’ and this evidence was being used to inform their decision about the time of death, say police.
A friend has reportedly told police earlier this week Gurjit had been worried for his safety the last few days after a break-in attempt at his house.
Gurjit had been excitedly sharing plans to holiday with his new wife the night police believe he was murdered.
The man from Ludhiana in northern India arrived in New Zealand in 2015 on a student visa, and struggled his way up to finally take up work as a fibre telecommunications technician with Chorus.
Sources say Gurjit's body will be sent to India from Christchurch. His father is scheduled to arrive on February 4 to do the legal formalities.