Mystery dead man identified, named

This sketch of the dead man was released by police

The man whose body was found in a Rotorua park earlier this week has finally been identified.

Police were this morning notified that Alan Christopher John Tovio had been missing from a property in Rotorua, and have since confirmed he was the man found dead in Linton Park reserve on Monday.

The 22-year-old moved to Rotorua late last year having previously lived in the Auckland region.

His death is not being treated as suspicious and had been referred to the coroner, police said.

Detective Sergeant Tony Colby earlier described the case as "highly unusual", given police had been unable to identify the man for several days after his body was found.

This afternoon, he thanked the public for their help.

"The sharing of our updates, particularly across social media, has been overwhelming with messages of support received from across New Zealand and even overseas," he said.

"These cases, whilst incredibly sad, demonstrate the true compassion that the majority of our community have for one another at times of need.

"We are pleased that we are able to at least return this young man to his family and our thoughts are with them at this difficult time."