Police investigating the killing of a woman in Wellington say they believe she tried to get away as she was violently attacked with a rod.
The body of Alison McPhee, 42, was found in her Newtown Park flat in July several days after she had died.
Acting Detective Inspector Scott Miller is appealing to anyone who may have seen a steel, aluminium or wooden rod discarded in the area to contact police.
Mr Miller says the police have completed a scene examination. He says the front door was locked from the inside, so the attacker may have escaped through a rear window.
