TWO people died when their car left the road and overturned in a field.

The man and woman were found dead in the wreckage of a green Citroen ZX found on its roof in Roke, near Benson.

A passing motorist on an unclassified road off Watlington Road spotted the overturned car and called police at about noon on Easter Sunday.

Police officers found the woman, aged in her 20s and from the Benson area, and the man, believed to be in his 40s, dead inside the wreckage.

Sgt Mark Hammond said: “At this stage we do not know exactly what time this car left the road. We do not believe that any other vehicle was involved.”

Thames Valley Police spokesman Adam Fisher said the crash could have happened up to 12 hours before the wreckage was found.

He said: “At the moment we are trying to piece together the woman’s movements to try to get a more precise time for when the accident happened.”

The car ended up in a field owned by Richard Howlett, 40, of Hare Hall Farm.

Mr Howlett said: “It must have happened in the night but we didn’t hear anything.

“It was the next day when we saw the police that we realised there had been an accident, but I don’t know who found the car.”

Mr Howlett said he saw the car on its roof about 20ft inside the field.

He added: “Looking at the state of the hedge I’m guessing it must have been going quite some speed.”

The accident happened on a stretch of road known locally as Holland Tide Bottom.

Mr Howlett said: “The road does dip rather suddenly there and if they were going fast and didn’t know it very well then it could be dangerous.”

Roke villagers said they became aware of the accident when several emergency service vehicles came through the village.

Don Chapel, 78, said: “Two fire engines and an ambulance car came through and that’s when I thought something nasty had happened. A few people came out to see what was going on. It’s a terrible shame.”

Last night police had not managed to identify the dead man. The name of the woman has not yet been released.

Mr Fisher said police sealed off the scene and closed the road for several hours while accident investigators examined the wreckage.

Anyone with information should call Sgt Hammond on 08458 505505 or the Crimestoppers hotline anonymously on 0800 555111.

news@oxfordmail.co.uk