The two bodies were discovered inside the car in a lay-by on the A47 near Earl Shilton, Leicestershire, late on Tuesday evening.

A police cordon has been set up and forensic examinations are taking place.

Det Supt Chris Thomas said they are not actively seeking any other people in connection with the deaths.

Busy lay-by

He said the results of a post-mortem examination will help with the identity of the victims, but added the police are not linking it to any other incident.

The deaths are being treated as suspicious

Police were unable to say whether the victims were male or female - or even adults.

The car will also need further examination to establish its make and model.

A Leicestershire Police spokeswoman said: "Because of the ferocity of the fire, identification of the deceased and determining what happened might take some time.

"We are keeping an open mind. It is too early to speculate."

Jim Driver, who owns a pet food business near the scene, said he believed there might have been witnesses to the incident.

He said: "There's often quite a lot of traffic around there. Lorries park here so the drivers may have seen what happened."