A BURNED-OUT car said to have been used in the alleged attempted murder of two police officers was suspected to have been stolen, a court has heard.

The High Court in Edinburgh was told the 4x4 vehicle was found fire-damaged in a residential area less than two miles away from the scene of the incident in Glasgow.

A search of the burned car later uncovered a purse that contained a woman’s driving licence and bank cards, jurors were told.

David McLean, 31, and 25-year-old Ryan Gilmour are on trial for a fourth day. They deny trying to kill two police officers.

They are accused of the attempted murder of Pc Deborah Lawson and fellow constable Robert Fitzsimmons by striking them repeatedly with a car in Banner Drive, Knightswood, on October 23 last year.

Detective Constable Stephen McGrath, 33, told the trial he was on night shift that Sunday when he was called to the incident. On arrival, he was told a member of the public had reported a vehicle on fire in Lennox Gardens in Scotstoun.

He agreed with advocate depute Tim Niven-Smith, prosecuting, that police considered the two events might be connected.

He further agreed he had “suspicions” about the vehicle because there were no markings on the number plate to indicate which garage it had been bought from.

The court heard the two locations were less than two miles apart and that the fire had been put out by the time Mr McGrath arrived at the scene.

Mr McLean and Mr Gilmour are alleged to have attempted to murder the two officers by reversing a Nissan car towards them and repeatedly hitting them with the vehicle “to the danger of their lives”.

They also deny wilfully setting fire to the vehicle, which had false number plates, and attempting to pervert the course of justice. The trial continues.