Body found in Queen Street shop doorway

11:29 am on 15 September 2016

A large fight broke out shortly before a man was found dead in central Auckland this morning.

The police cordon around the area where the body was discovered.

The police cordon around the area where the body was discovered. Photo: RNZ / Mohamed Hassan

The man was found in a doorway between two stores on Queen Street just before 1am today.

Police have launched an investigation and were treating the death as suspicious.

A witness who spoke to RNZ said the man lived on the street, and may have died of a synthetic drug overdose.

But detective senior sergeant Glenn Baldwin said police officers were still trying to establish how the man died, and were investigating a fight between several people that could be linked to his death.

He says efforts to locate the man's next of kin are underway and police were awaiting the results of a post-mortem examination.

William Philips was at the scene and said he knew the man, who was living on the street.

Mr Philips believed the man overdosed on synthetic drugs, and was visibly pale when he saw him.

"I walked into BKs [Burger King] last night, and when I came out he was lying down. He died outside EB Games last night. The ambulance were here to try and resuscitate him, and they tried CPR on him. I think they brought him back to life, but when he entered the ambulance, I think he died on the way to the hospital."