A postmortem has confirmed that the death of a teenager in Kerikeri was not accidental.
The body of Liberty Rose Templeman, 15, was found in an abandoned orchard close to the town centre, at about 5.30pm on Sunday.
Inspector Chris Scahill told Morning Report her death is considered as a homicide and was not accidental.
He said someone, or possibly more than one person, knows what happened to Miss Templeman and he encouraged them to contact the police.
Miss Templeman was a student at Kerikeri High School until a fortnight ago when she moved to Auckland with her parents. She was back in Kerikeri for the weekend, visiting friends.
Inspector Scahill said the community has been hit hard by her death.