Man killed then set on fire
December 31, 7.10pm
A MAN was killed and then set alight on a Warwickshire motorway, police have revealed.
Detectives launched a murder hunt today following the discovery of a burning body on the M45 near Dunchurch, Rugby.
A post-mortem revealed the man, aged between 45 and 75, died as a result of head injuries.
But his body was so badly burned pathologists could not confirm his race.
Detective Superintendent Adrian McGee said: “It’s an unusual place for a body to be left but it is on the side of a busy motorway.
“It is in daylight. It is unusual behaviour to set somebody alight on the side of a motorway.
“Somebody would have recognised that.
"That’s why we are appealing for anybody who was here between 12.30pm and 1.30pm yesterday afternoon (Tuesday) to come forward.
“If somebody’s taken a body out of a car on the side of a motorway it would take some time to do so, so the person would have to be parked up here, if that is what has happened, for some time.â€
The alarm was raised yesterday when a motorist driving to Coventry reported a fire a mile from junction 10 of the M45 eastbound carriageway.
Highways Agency staff only noticed it was a body after the fire had been extinguished.
The motorway was cordoned off between the A45/M45 Thurlaston roundabout and junction 17 of the M1.
Scores of officers from Warwickshire Police conducted a fingertip search of the six-mile stretch of road.
Anyone with information about the body should contact Warwickshire Police on 01926 415 789 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
