Police seek flatmate after fatal fire

A policeman examines the scene of yesterday morning's fire in which Chinese student Zhuo Xu perished. Picture / Richard Robinson

Police are looking for a mystery man believed to be the flatmate of a Chinese student killed in a suspicious house fire in Auckland yesterday.

However, they said this morning they could not be sure whether or not there definitely was a flatmate.

"There is conflicting information so we are going to make sure who had access to the address... if there was anybody at all," said Detective Senior Sergeant Mark Benefield who is leading the investigation.

Firefighters tried unsuccessfully to resuscitate Zhuo Xu, who was found curled up and unconscious in the wardrobe of his burning Blockhouse Bay Rd home about 2.45am.

It is understood the house smelled strongly of petrol and there were traces of blood in the wardrobe and on a broken window, possibly from a cut Mr Xu, 24, may have received trying to escape.

It is not known how Mr Xu came to be in the wardrobe.

Another man is believed to have been living at the house, and Mr Benefield said police were keen to track him down.

"It is important that we locate whoever else lived at 419 Blockhouse Bay Rd, so that we can account for everyone."

Fire Service Senior Station Officer Shaun Thornton said firefighters arrived at the house just after 2.30am to find it "reasonably well involved".

They searched the house and found Mr Xu in the bedroom. He was burned, bleeding and unconscious.

Neither CPR nor defibrillation could revive him, Mr Thornton said.

Neighbour Gina Williams said she and her partner awoke about 2.45am to the sound of smashing glass.

They went outside to see their neighbours' house on fire and yelled out to firefighters that two people lived there and might be inside.

One neighbour said two Chinese men lived at the house, but they were difficult to contact.

Another neighbour said the men "basically kept to themselves".

- additional reporting: NZPA