Slain Wellington man had 'vicious' injuries - cop

Matthew Hall performing on stage with his band Backyard Burial. Photo / Supplied

The officer heading the investigation into the slaying of a Wellington man says his injuries were some of the most "vicious" he had seen in his 23 years on the force.

Matthew John Hall, 35, was found stabbed to death in his bed at his Johnsonville home by his flatmate on Tuesday.

He worked a consumer consultant for Capital & Coast DHB's alcohol and drug services and general adult mental health services as well as singing in a death metal band.

An autopsy showed he died of multiple stab wounds following a "ferocious" attack.

Detective Senior Sergeant Dave Thornton, leading the hunt to find the killer, said today the injuries were among the worst he had seen.

"I've been in the police for 23 years, I've done a number of homicides and when I attended that post-mortem they were some of the most vicious injuries I've ever seen," Mr Thornton told NZPA.

"It's a very ferocious and vicious attack on a guy that, from our preliminary reconstruction, was lying on his bed, probably asleep," he said.

Police were today working to try and identify what type of weapon was used in the attack and forensic scientists were expected to complete their scene examination this afternoon, but police would stay at the house.

Mr Thornton said a steady flow of calls had been received since a phone line was launched yesterday but police still wanted to hear from anyone who had information, no matter how insignificant they thought it was.

"I cannot stress enough how important it is for those who were near 118 Broderick Road, Johnsonville, between midday Monday and 6pm Tuesday to phone us as soon as possible, if they saw anyone entering or leaving the address," he said.

Apart from working in the mental health sector, Mr Hall was lead singer in death metal band Backyard Burial and went by the stage name "Blaps Warmonger".

The band was formed by a group of school friends in Lower Hutt in 1998.

A close friend of Mr Hall, who did not want to be named, told NZPA he was a great friend and an "extremely intelligent guy who could succeed at anything he wanted to do".

"He was a very supportive friend and was pretty much the best friend that anyone could ask for," he said.

He said the support he had received since Mr Hall's death had helped but "nothing's going to take the pain away".

Another friend said his circle of friends were devastated by his death.

"We've spent the last three nights together just talking and supporting each other," she said.

She said she had known Mr Hall for about five years and met him after going to gigs.

"He was just a really genuine and extremely intelligent human being, and a really good friend to a lot of people."

Along with death metal he had a passion for home brewing and had a set-up called Broderick Brewery, she said.

She said Mr Hall was a reserved man but "not when he went on stage".

Tributes to Mr Hall have been left on his band's Facebook page with one saying he was "head brewer, scholar, vocalist and best friend to many".

Police were asking anyone with any information to phone 0508 BRODERICK

- NZPA