This article is more than 11 years old

This article is more than 11 years old

An x-ray showing around 30 nails piercing a skull has been released by Australian police, vividly revealing the gruesome death of a 27-year-old man.

Police released the shocking picture in the hope of finding the killer who used a high-powered nail gun to fire the metal spikes, up to 85mm (3.3in) long, into the victim's head and neck late last year.

Two children, aged nine and 14, found Chen Liu, who was also known as Anthony, as they canoed down Georges river in south Sydney last year.

As they paddled past mangroves at dusk on 1 November, they spotted a badly decomposed body wrapped in a rug and raced to tell their parents.

Mr Liu, who had been dead for 12 days, was bound with electrical wires and an extension cord and then rolled in a domestic rug with the ends neatly tucked in, which was then tied with three pieces of wire.

"In 36 years of investigation, I've never come across a murder of this nature using a nail gun. May I say it's a particularly brutal and vicious murder and we are seeking information from the public so we can bring this inquiry to a conclusion," the head of the homicide squad, Geoff Beresford, said.

Police believe Mr Liu was killed then driven to the river in his blue 2005 Range Rover Sport 4WD. But no arrests have been made and the weapon is yet to be found.

Two weeks before the children discovered Mr Liu's body, a male friend reported him missing.