The body of Jeff Hunter, 54, was found in his 12th-floor apartment in Miraflores, a district of Peru's capital Lima, last Tuesday morning after he reportedly spent the previous night with three women.

Local police said Mr Hunter, who had been working for South American company Stracon GyM as a health, safety and environment manager, died of asphyxiation, according to the El Comercio newspaper in Peru.

Cocaine and marijuana were also found near the body, the newspaper reported.

Another newspaper, Trome, reported that Mr Hunter's head was covered in a plastic bag that was attached by a tube to a helium tank.

Local police initially ruled that Mr Hunter's death was a suicide.

But Trome has since reported that his death was now the subject of a criminal investigation and police were hoping to question the women who spent the night with him. The women had left the scene before his body was found, Trome reported.

Mr Hunter's body was discovered by his housekeeper, who called a locksmith when Mr Hunter did not answer his door, according to local media reports.

Initially it was thought that Mr Hunter may have been robbed because his safe was open and his mobile phone and laptop were missing, according to local reports.

Mr Hunter's family lives in Townsville, and he had worked at several North Queensland mines including Century, Cannington and Mount Carlton.

He had also worked in the mining sectors in Jamaica, Indonesia, Lao, Ghana, Mali, and China.

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said the Australian Embassy in Lima was providing consular assistance to the family of an Australian man who had died recently in Peru.

Fairfax Media

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