Police are investigating after a man’s body was found on the M1 in the early hours of this morning – amid claims it was a murder victim hurled from a moving vehicle.
The body was “run over by several vehicles” before police sealed off the motorway at 3am.
Police found the body on the northbound carriageway between junctions 16 and 18 near Northampton.
Unconfirmed reports from Twitter users have said that the body was a result of a murder.
Sergeant Tony Hopkins, of Northamptonshire Police, said: “We got several reports from drivers heading northbound saying there was a body in the road.
“Unfortunately this body had been travelled over by several vehicles, so we do have quite a scene at the moment.
“Has someone given a lift to someone they didn’t know?
“We need to establish the vehicle that first collided with him.
“We just need to work out what brought the man to this position in the first place.
“We need to find out where the person came from and why they were on the M1. We are trying to work out what happened.”
Rumours were rife on social media yesterday with some Twitter users claiming the victim’s body had been hurled out of a moving vehicle.
Twitter user ClarkeyDJ posted: M1 North is shut due to ‘ a police investigation’ but I just overheard the roadside maintenance guys saying it’s a murder & body was dumped out of a moving vehicle in the early hours.”
In a later post he added the whole carriageway was shut to allow police to put up screens so other motorist would not see the “incredibly unpleasant” scene.
A police spokesperson said: “A stretch of the M1 motorway in Northamptonshire is expected to remain closed for most of today following the discovery of a body in road.
“The motorway’s northbound carriageway was closed at about 3am, Tuesday, January 10, from junctions 16 to 17.”
“Motorists are advised to seek alternative routes and diversions will be in place.
“A police investigation into the incident is under way.”
Northamptonshire Police said they received a call-out at around 2.10am from a lorry driver who thought he had hit a dead body on the motorway.
Speaking at the scene today (Tue) Sergeant Tony Hopkins said: “A lorry driver reported to the police that they believed that there was a male body lying in the road.
“Police arrived 10-15 minutes later to find a catastrophic injury had been caused to a male.
“What we are trying to establish now is was this male a pedestrian, was he on a vehicle and how he came to rest at that point.
“The police have got an awful lot of investigation to do this morning and Highways England have got a clean up operation to do.
“What we are appealing for is anyone that would have been on the M1 Northbound at 2am this morning, that may have seen a pedestrian, that may have seen some suspicious activity.
“We are also appealing for anyone that may have been a lorry driver or car driver that was on that section of road that has got a dash cam fitted that would help us with intelligence around what has happened for this male to become in the state that he was this morning.
“I’m not able to identify who this male is at the moment as we are still establishing next of kin.
“There should be an update later on when we have got further information.”