The body found lodged in a stormwater drain in central Wellington on Sunday was that of a man, police say.
A member of the public found the body near Te Papa, the national museum, close to the central Wellington waterfront. It was found near a carpark used for a regular Sunday market.
Investigation head Detective Inspector Paul Basham said the man's body was removed from the drain overnight for a post-mortem examination.
The death was unexplained and was being treated as suspicious.
"It is certainly an unusual circumstance to locate a body in a stormwater culvert," Mr Basham said.