A 22-year-old man was last night being quizzed by murder squad detectives after the body of a work colleague was found outside a Westcountry pub.
The victim, a 25-year-old man believed to be from South Wales, was discovered in the street in the village of Malborough, in South Devon, on Saturday morning.
Paramedics, who were called to the village shortly before 7am, tried in vain to revive the 25-year-old and alerted Devon and Cornwall Police. A force spokesman said the victim had "clearly been assaulted".
The 22-year-old man, who is understood to have been a workmate of the dead man, was arrested on suspicion of murder at 7.20am.
He was yesterday being questioned by detectives at Torquay police station.
It is believed the men had been staying at the Old Inn, in the middle of the village, part of which was searched by officers over the weekend.
"We have had a number of officers in the village conducting house-to-house inquiries," a spokesman for Devon and Cornwall Police said. Officers have appealed for witnesses to come forward.