Tumpat district police chief Azmir Damiri said the accident happened after the Honda HRV vehicle crashed into a pillar before catching fire.

He said one of the victims, believed to be the driver, aged 33, was flung out of the vehicle while two others were burnt beyond recognition in the vehicle.

“Based on the information gathered, the three men, together with a fourth man, stole a Ford Ranger four-wheel-drive vehicle from a house near Kampung Palekbang moments earlier.

“Initial investigation showed that all four of them were in the Honda HRV before one of them tried to flee with the Ford Ranger from the house,” he said at the district police headquarters (IPD) here today.

Azmir said the Ford Ranger vehicle owner realised something amiss when he heard his vehicle’s engine being started. When he tried to confront the thieves, one of them flung a sharp object at him before the culprits took off in both cars.

“The owner of the Ford Ranger then chased after them in his BMW before the Honda HRV, with the three suspects in it, skidded and hit a concrete pillar at Kampung Morak before bursting into flames,” he said.

Azmir added that the vehicle owner, however, continued to chase after the suspect driving his Ford Ranger, which later skidded in Kubang Kerian. The suspect, however, managed to escape.

He said that the case was being investigated under Sections 395 and 397 of the Penal Code and Section 41(1) of the Road Transport Act 1941.

He added that police were tracking down the man who fled in the Ford Ranger.