A hunchback suspect is being hunted by police after a young dad was fatally shot in the head.

Epalahame "Abraham" Tu'uheava, a young father from Manurewa, south Auckland, died in Greenwood Rd, Māngere, on Tuesday morning after being shot at least once in the head, police said.

A 25-year-old woman was found seriously injured at his side, also with multiple gunshot wounds.

She was Tu'uheava's wife Mele Tu'uheava, also known as Yolanda, a member of the couple's church said.

READ MORE: Police launch homicide investigation after south Auckland shooting

The couple have a young son together.

FACEBOOK Epalahame Tu'uheava has been identified as the man found dead in Māngere on Tuesday morning.

An Auckland District Health Board spokeswoman confirmed she was in a stable condition in Auckland City Hospital on Wednesday.

Tu'uheava's brother-in-law said it was a shock and his wife had been distraught since hearing of her brother's death.

The shock had been even more profound because they had not realised 28-year-old Tu'uheava was in Auckland.

David White stuff.co.nz Police converge in Māngere's Greenwood Rd after a man was found dead and a woman was found with serious injuries.

"We thought he was in Australia," the brother-in-law said.

On Wednesday afternoon, police Detective Inspector Faa Va'aelu said police were still not sure of the exact time of the shooting, and it could have been anytime between 11pm Monday and 6am Tuesday.

Police were calling for any sightings of Tu'uheava's vehicle, a silver 2017 Toyota Camry, along Greenwood Rd.

NZ POLICE The victims' car was found by police on Greenwood Rd on Tuesday morning.

They were also calling for sightings of two suspects seen in the area. They were believed to be Tongan men, with one slightly taller than the other.

"The taller one possibly has a little bit of a hunchback," Va'aelu said.

The killing was not thought to be random, and the offenders "weren't out to hunt", he said.

"We believe it might have been something a lot more sinister with the offenders . . . We believe there's a lot more to it, and we're working really hard to establish what has happened."

Va'aelu said it was not yet known if a struggle had taken place and police were working to reconstruct exactly what had happened.

Police were also working to find out if the victims and offenders knew each other.

"It will lead us to identify who they are," Va'aelu said.

It was not clear if Tu'uheava had links to gangs, or if the shooting was gang-related, he said.

Tu'uheava, 28, was a member of the Tongan church based in Favona Rd.

Friends and family have taken to social media to pay tribute to him.

"Man this is so sad!! RIP Abraham. All my love & prayers of comfort are going out to u & ur family," Tiyana Faimafili Schwenke said on Facebook.

"RIP Brother Epalahame Tu'uheava," Anamanu Taufa said in another post.

A third person said they were lost for words, and wrote to Mele Tu'uheava: "Stay strong, speedy recovery for you."

Tu'uheava was found dead in a paddock in a light industrial area in Māngere which was known as a rough area where homeless people sleep and rubbish was dumped.

Emergency services found him and the woman about 6am on Tuesday and the woman was rushed to hospital, Va'aelu said.

Police launched a homicide investigation and said they were hunting for two Tongan men.

Tongan Advisory Council chairman Melino Maka said he was "annoyed" with that police description.

"They should have said they have strong leads and are looking for Pacific Islander suspects, or are all Tongan males a suspect?" he said.

However, Va'aelu said it was a fair description based on the information police had to hand.

"The information we put out in the media is based on facts. I stand in front of you as a Pacific Islander New Zealander making this inquiry," he said.

Māngere MP Aupito William Sio said it was heart-wrenching to hear a young father has been killed.

"Nobody wants anyone killed in our neighbourhood. The community works really hard to promote the positive aspects of Māngere," he said.

"The reports I am seeing on social media raise serious concerns that it could be gang- or drug-related and I would like for all our community to cooperate and send that information to the police.

"I want the culprits to be found as soon as possible," he said.

A friend of Tu'uheava said the shooting was gang-related. Throughout Tuesday, patched members of a gang had driven past the police cordon at Greenwood Rd.

Mele Tu'uheava was helping police piece together what happened.