A Chinese man and his Malagasy assistant have been found dead, the Chinese embassy said Thursday, with police treating it as a murder case.

They were found in a lake on the outskirts of Madagascar's capital, Antananarivo, on Wednesday, according to local police.

"They were tortured with hard objects and then cast into the lake, but we found no trace of sharp objects or firearms on their bodies," a Talatamaty police spokesperson told Xinhua by telephone. "The hands and feet of the two people were tied together while their heads were wrapped in plastic bags," the spokesperson said. "Their eyes, their mouths and their feet were sellotaped, and they were still dressed."

The police said the victims were killed around 10:30 pm Tuesday local time and the body of the Chinese was being kept at a public hospital.

The Chinese, 37, was the owner of a stone-collecting company and the 50-year-old Malagasy worked as his translator, driver and bodyguard, the police said.

Police suspect the murder is linked to the Chinese man's business because about $2,000 had been stolen from his house. An investigation was underway to determine the motive and identify the murderers.

Xinhua