Radio New Zealand journalist Phillip Cottrell was unconscious from a severe bashing when he was found by a taxi driver on a quiet street in Wellington on Saturday morning. He was rushed to a hospital, but died the next day.

Cottrell, 43, was attacked while walking through Gilmer Terrace to Boulcott Street, as he was on his way home after finishing the night shift as bulletin editor in RNZ's Wellington newsroom, the New Zealand Herald reported.

Cottrell suffered severe head and arm injuries and was unconscious when a taxi driver found him. He underwent surgery to relieve pressure on his brain, but he was not able to recover and died on Sunday in Wellington Hospital.

Investigation head Scott Miller told the Herald Cottrell left his overnight shift at 5.30 a.m. and was found by the taxi driver at 5.41 a.m. Police are now treating his death as a homicide, and looking for traces of Cottrell's wallet, which was taken in the attack.

Police reassured the Wellington public through the media that there is no reason for alarm although Cottrell's bashing happened early in the morning on the street.

Cottrell's former colleagues described him as an adventurer, "by far the most well-travelled journalist in the newsroom,'' the Herald reported.