UPDATE: Police ID Man Found Dead In Burning Car

UPDATE Tuesday 9 a.m.: Police have identified the victim as 65-year-old Mohammad Rafiq, of Baldwin. Detectives believe his death to be non-criminal in nature.

EAST PATCHOGUE, NY – A person was found dead in the driver’s seat of a car that burned in a fire Sunday night in Suffolk County, police say.

According to Suffolk Police, Fifth Precinct Patrol officers responded to a 911 report of a car on fire in the parking lot of a business located at 1236 Montauk Highway, near Kane Avenue, in East Patchogue at 8:20 p.m. The Hagerman Fire Department extinguished the fire without incident before discovering a body burned beyond recognition inside the vehicle.

The medical examiner will perform an autopsy to determine the cause of death. The victim’s identity will be determined following the autopsy.

Arson Section detectives are continuing their investigation into the cause of the fire.

Police are are asking anyone with information to call the Homicide Squad at 631-852-6392 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-220-TIPS.