'Machete' teen held over Qld stabbing

Paramedics worked to revive him for 10 to 15 minutes before he was declared dead at the scene.

About an hour and a half earlier, a 17-year-old was stopped by police after being seen running along the same road in Brisbane's north.

He was carrying a concealed knife the "size of small machete" when searched by police, Detective Superintendent Andrew Massingham said.

"This knife went from one side of the body to the other. It's almost 45 centimetres. To describe it as a large is probably an understatement," he told reporters.

"For someone to be carrying that around in quite a public area at that time of night concerns me."

His 17-year-old partner allegedly assaulted police and was arrested, with the pair taken to a nearby location and issued court notices for various offences.

After the discovery of the injured man, the pair were taken Hendra Police Station, where they are being questioned with legal representatives present.

The pair have provided a version of events, with police testing the veracity of their stories.

Further charges are yet to be laid.

"We expect to make a decision on that later today after all available evidence has been gathered," Det Spt Massingham said.

"This is indeed a tragic incident. This man was killed less than a kilometre from his home."

It appears the man was walking home before getting into an altercation, police said.

Det Spt Massingham said dash-cam vision from passing traffic along the busy road would likely be key to solving the crime.

"The circumstances are not clear in terms of what led up to it, whether it was a robbery or whether it was a disagreement in relation to something else," he said.

"We simply don't know and, at this stage, the two persons we have with us have provided limited information."

There is no evidence to suggest the parties knew each other, he added.

The victim's sister has been notified of his death and an autopsy will be conducted on Monday.