POLICE probing the mystery death of a man found engulfed in flames today said they did not know if it was murder or suicide.

Officers have launched a major investigation into the death of Parvez Hussein Shah, of Princess Street, Great Harwood, who died after suffering 75 per cent burns to his body.

Inspector Bob Ford said: "We are treating this incident as suspicious at the moment, but we have to find out if this was a tragic case of suicide or if somebody has murdered him."

Firefighters and paramedics were called to a house at Princess Street, shortly after midnight yesterday.

They found 23-year-old Mr Shah in the hallway of a relative's house, suffering from severe burns and cuts to his arms and took him to Blackburn Infirmary. It is believed Mr Shah cut his arms when fell through the window of his house.

He was transferred to the burns unit at Withington Hospital but died late yesterday.

A post mortem examination was due to be carried out this morning.

Mr Shah's father-in-law Javed Hussain Shah today told how he tried to save him.

Parvez, who worked as a paper packer in Blackburn, lived with his wife Nahid, 21, and their three-month-old son Hamza.

Nahid's parents, Javed and Parveen Shah, live in the house next door.

Javed Hussain Shah said: "My wife Parveen had been round earlier to bring the baby to our house so Parvez and Nahid could have a rest.

"After Nahid came round to take the baby home and went back next door, she came running in, screaming and crying.

"I rushed next door and I could smell smoke, but I couldn't find Parvez. I couldn't get out of the house because the door is faulty and locked itself. "I went out of the back door to my house, but when I opened my front door, Parvez was standing on the pavement and he was covered in burns and had cuts on his arms.

"I grabbed him and brought him inside and we called for an ambulance.

"He was a lovely, quiet guy and everyone is devastated. He never said what happened and we still don't know how the fire started."

Mr Shah's parents live in Pakistan and have not yet been informed of his death. His funeral will take place in Pakistan when his body is released.

Det Supt Bob Denmark said: "We are currently making a number of inquiries locally to try to find out what happened to Mr Shah. At the moment we are not in a position to say whether his injuries were caused accidentally or deliberately, nor do we know if anybody else was involved."

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.