Investigation into teen's death 'could take months'

Mr Elliott was found dead by St John ambulance staff in his bed at 9am on Tuesday. File photo

Police say it could take months before they know what caused the death of 19-year-old James Elliott who died unexpectedly at his Henderson flat earlier this week.

Mr Elliott was found dead by St John ambulance staff in his bed at 9am on Tuesday. A post-mortem examination, also carried out on Tuesday, could not establish the cause of Mr Elliott's death, leaving his friends and family facing an agonising wait.

Detective Senior Sergeant Roger Small said an investigation into the teens death could take "weeks or months" to yield an answer.

"It is still unexplained, we are still waiting on forensic results to assist us in our inquiry and that is still ongoing. We can't rush toxicology results and things like that," Mr Small said.

"It could takes us weeks [or] months, it is just an unknown quantity. We have got a lot of people to speak to, a lot of background work to do and until we get to that level where we have sufficient evidence to be convinced ... we will continue with our investigation."

Mr Elliott's father, David Elliott, who spoke to the Herald yesterday, said not knowing why his son had died had been incredibly hard to face.

"It has been painful. I would really love to know what the cause of death was. It will make it easier to deal with," he said.

"I am just trying to hold it all together ... I just feel so numb."

Mr Elliott was described by his father as a "fun-loving, kind person", who loved football, snowboarding and skateboarding.

"He was a genuinely nice guy and he was well respected," David Elliott said. "He was well-liked wherever he went."

A funeral for Mr Elliott is being planned for Tuesday next week and is expected to be a "packed-out" event.

Mr Small said police would keep Mr Elliott's family as "well informed as we possibly can" until an answer could be reached.