The asylum seeker killed on Manus Island during rioting has been named as 23 year-old Iranian Reza Barati.



At a briefing on Friday, immigration minister Scott Morrison said that Barati had arrived in Australia on 24 July 2013 – just five days after the hardline PNG solution was announced – and was sent to Manus Island.



“The family expressed their wish to have the body returned home for burial arrangements,” Morrison said.



A group of contractors who all met Barati on Manus island sent Guardian Australia an exclusive statement describing him as a “gentle giant”.



The group said that Barati was “known to be a joker” and that many of the contractors were helping him to learn English.



“We read him children’s books such as fairy tales and Reza always waited and looked forward to meeting with us and reading with him. He studied a lot,” the group said.



“He used to always pick up bugs and moths off the ground and put them back in the garden, worried that someone would step on them. (The guys used to feed the moths to cane toad frogs around the compound for fun... There wasn’t much else to do...) He used to try and stop them.”



They continued: “Reza also always helped staff hand out medical slips and appointment slips to those in the same compound as him. He wanted to keep busy to avoid boredom and keep his mind active.”



The group described Barati as “very tall and very muscly” and said they were worried that he may have been singled out during the riot because of his size.



None of the contractors were present in the detention centre at the time of the riots but say they had met with Barati “nearly every day” during their stints on Manus.



“Reza worked out in the gym a lot and taught his friends how to stay fit and healthy. He helped his friends learn how to use the gym equipment. Many of the guys did not want to participate in recreational activities due to stress, depression and other mental health issues.”



Guardian Australia understands that Barati was detained in Mike compound where the majority of the rioting broke out. He was transferred from Oscar compound due to the length of his stay on Manus, and for good behaviour.



“Reza had a close relationship with many of the other transferees, where one was, the other was not far away,” the group said.



Barati’s body is now being moved with a Papua New Guinea police escort to Port Moresby where an autopsy will be conducted. Morrison said Australia was “assisting” with the autopsy.



It is unclear whether the PNG coroner will also conduct an inquiry into the death of Barati. Coronial inquests have to be approved by the PNG national executive eouncil, but it has not yet issued any approval relating to Barati’s death.