Luton man shot before car crashes into house and bursts into flames

A male driver suffered "life-changing injuries" when he was shot shortly before being pulled from the wreckage of a burning car after it crashed into the front of a house.

The black estate car burst into flames after it hit the terraced row in Princess Street, Luton, at around 17:00 BST on Saturday.

A 24-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to murder.

The occupants of the house were unharmed, Bedfordshire Police said.

Witnesses reported hearing gunshots in the area before the crash, which happened two streets from the town's central police station.

The driver was treated at the scene by an ambulance crew before being airlifted to hospital.

A number of houses were evacuated along the street as a precaution.

Princess Street remained cordoned off and the burned out car was still in place on Sunday while forensic teams searched the area and checked parked vehicles.

One witness, who did not want to be named, said: "I saw a man pulled out of the car by the firefighters and he was blackened and singed from the smoke.

"He was wrapped in a blanket before being taken away in the ambulance."

Officers are keen to speak to anyone who has any information or mobile phone footage of the incident.