Flames from burning car reached 30 feet as murdered mum lay dying inside, court told

Stephen Unwin and William McFall "disposed of" Quyen Nguyen, who they had held captive and raped at a house, by setting fire to her Audi A4 with her "incapacitated" and wrapped in a sheet inside.Newcastle Crown Court heard during her "horror" ordeal, the 28-year-old nail salon worker, who was known as Anna, had been ordered to hand over her bank details while being subjected to physical and sexual violence.Miss Nguyen's remains, which could only be identified by dental records, were found when emergency services were called to a dirt track at Success Road, in Shiney Row, last August.The court heard local residents had reported hearing "explosions" in an area near allotments.One nearby neighbour had been woken by noises and heard a "bang".She told police she looked out of her window and added: "A huge, dark grey smoke, in a plume, came from the direction of the allotments, about 30ft in height."All of a sudden, instantly really, huge flames started to appear."Straight away I assumed this was a car, it looked like the flames were too big to be from a motor cycle."The flames were nearly as tall as the smoke."It looked like the hedges and bushes were also on fire."Tyne and Wear fire and rescue service group manager William Forster attended the scene as part of the investigation into the cause of the blaze.He was drafted in to assist after the fire crew at the scene found Miss Nguyen's body in the back seat when they were called to extinguish the blaze.Mr Forster told jurors: "There was no signs of life. Extensive, heavy charring and burning of the body, from head to toe, was evident."The court heard the body, which was lying face down with feet on the floor, had been badly damaged by fire and heat.He added: "Our initial thought was it was a small, slightly built person, possibly a child, possible a female."Mr Forster said the fire was "intense" with the inside and outside components of the vehicle being destroyed, and use of an accelerant was considered as a possibility.He added: "The vehicle was completely engulfed in fire."Mr Forster said some items, which were found underneath the body, had been saved from destruction.They included a wallet, pieces of bra, remains of a purse, remains of a passport, part of an envelope, keys, coins and lipstick tubes.

Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service watch manager James Ferguson found Quyen Nguyen's badly burned body when his crew attended to put out the car blaze.He said car fires can reach temperatures of 1000 degrees and added: "Flames emanated from the interior compartment, boot and under the vehicle."Mr Ferguson said in his statement, which has been read to the jury, that the crew had started to extinguish the blaze when he made the grim find.He said: "The body was slumped face down."And he added: "The body was virtually cremated."Paramedic Holly Smith attended the scene after the body was found.She said the remains "just appeared to be a skeleton" and that death was pronounced without physical examination.In a statement to detectives, Miss Nguyen's sister Quynh Nguyen told of her fear when her sibling did not return to the home they shared that night last August and that she had searched the streets looking for her.Mrs Nguyen, who works as a nail technician at the shop they jointly run, said: "When I saw she hadn't come home the next morning I tried to ring her but I couldn't get through. It was off."I became worried about her and contacted some of her friends, who didn't know where she was."I continued to get more worried as the day went on."I reported her missing at about 1pm."When police hadn't arrived by 3pm I decided to go and look for her, with my husband and children, in the car."Mrs Nguyen said in her statement she did not ask her sister, who had a little boy, much about her personal life but knew she had nothing to do with her son's father, who was in Vietnam.The court heard the sisters had been born in Vietnam and moved separately to the UK but lived together in Killingworth, North Tyneside.

They ran a nail salon, named Glitter Nails, together at Birtley in Gateshead.Mrs Nguyen said later on the day she reported her sister missing, she was told tragic news.She said: "I was informed by Northumbria Police that my sister's car, an Audi A4, which she had owned for two years, had been found burned out in a lane in Shiney Row."I was told there was a body of a female found inside, badly burned, and paperwork found inside suggested the body was that of my sister."The court has heard it is likely Miss Nguyen was 'just alive' when she, and her car, were set alight.A post mortem suggested she had died in the early stages of the fire.Unwin, 40, of St. Oswald's Terrace, Houghton, and McFall, 51, who is originally from Northern Ireland but now of Waterloo Road, Blackpool, have both denied her murder and rape.The trial continues.