A man has been killed in a car crash while trying to dispose of the body of his girlfriend after he stabbed her to death.

A woman also died in the crash and her partner was left in a critical condition after they tried to help their friend get rid of the body.

Cops found three dead bodies when they arrived at the crash site on the R23 provincial route near the town of Standerton in the South African province of Mpumalanga on Tuesday, 9th November.

However, the police investigation revealed that just two of the three victims had died in the collision between their vehicle and a lorry, with the third having died several hours earlier.

Police spokesman Brigadier Selvy Mohlala revealed that two couples were having a party when one of the couples began to argue.

It was then that one of the men, not named but aged 31, allegedly fatally stabbed his partner, not named but aged 33.

According to the investigation, the alleged perpetrator and the remaining couple, whose identities were not reported, then decided to dispose of the body.

They loaded it into a car and all three then drove away with it.

When they crashed into a lorry en route, the alleged murderer was killed, as was the woman.

Her partner survived the collision and was taken to hospital. He was described as “critically injured” in a report by Jacaranda FM last updated on Wednesday, 10th November.

Photos taken at the scene show how the car was completely mangled in the crash.

It is not clear where the three had been planning to discard the body, nor was it reported where the party and subsequent argument had taken place.

The case has reportedly been registered as murder and culpable homicide and it is being investigated by the police.