Police are trying to identify a person who was found dead Saturday in a burning car parked along the 1000 block of Westminster Street in St. Paul.

Firefighters were called about 5:30 p.m. and after extinguishing the fire found a body inside the vehicle, St. Paul police spokesman Steve Linders said. Officers are treating the area as a crime scene, he said, and investigators are looking for witnesses or people who can help identify the person who died.

Police do not know the age, gender or race of that person and are working with the Ramsey County medical examiner's office to identify the person, Linders said. Forensic and arson investigators are also reviewing the situation, he said.

"What we're trying to figure out is who was in the car and how that person died," Linders said.

Jessie Van Berkel • 952-746-3280