Bodies of two missing men found in car hidden in ‘thick undergrowth’

The bodies of two men who were separately reported missing have been found, Lancashire Police said on Sunday.

William Hutchinson, 31, and Stuart Tallis, 27, were found by specialist searchers inside a car hidden from view and covered by “thick bushes”.

The discovery was made on the westbound carriageway of the A584 Preston New Road, close to the junction of Newton and the A583 Blackpool Road at Clifton.

While no formal identification has yet been made, Lancashire Police believe the bodies are those of the men who were reported missing last month.

Mr Hutchinson was last seen in Preston in the early hours of June 24 and is believed to have left the area in a blue Peugeot 106.

Mr Tallis was last seen in the Fishwick View area of ​​Preston at around 1.30am the same day and was reported missing three days later on June 27.

Sergeant Martin Wilcock, of the force’s serious collision investigation unit, said: “Two men have lost their lives in what appears to be an extremely tragic incident. My thoughts are with their loved ones at this sad time.

“I know that some of my colleagues were involved in the search for William and Stuart and I know that they hope for a happier outcome.

“My job now is to establish the full circumstances leading up to the collision, so I would appeal to any witnesses who may assist the investigation, or anyone with CCTV or dashcam footage, to contact my officers.”

Police said the man’s relatives were “aware of the extremely distressing development and our thoughts are with them at this sad time and they are supported by specially trained police officers.”

As part of Lancashire Police’s ongoing investigation, police are appealing for any witnesses who saw a blue Peugeot 106 on the A584 Preston New Road in the minutes before 5.30am on June 24 to contact police as soon as possible.

“We believe this is the time when Peugeot leaves the mainstream,” he said in a statement. “We are also asking motorists traveling in the area at the time to check their dashcam footage to see if they have captured anything that could assist our investigation.”

Anyone with information is asked to contact Lancashire Police by emailing SCIU@lancashire.police.uk or calling 101 and quoting log 613 of 4 July 2026.