Body found in burning car in farm field near Owatonna

Officers with the Steele County Sheriff's Office are investigating how a man's body ended up in a burning vehicle in a farm field near Owatonna.

The body was found on Sunday night shortly after 6:30 p.m. on the 2000 block of northwest 52nd Avenue, according to a statement from the sheriff's office.

Chief Deputy Scott Hanson said in the statement that the department was tipped off by a "suspicious call." Officers and firefighters discovered the vehicle fire when they arrived. The body of the man was inside the vehicle, which was completely destroyed before the fire was extinguished, according to the statement.

The victim has not yet been identified. His cause of death is not yet known.

The Minnesota State Fire Marshall and the Southern Minnesota Regional Medical Examiner's Office are assisting with the investigation.

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