A murder inquiry has been started after a young woman who was deliberately set on fire died from her injuries.

The woman, thought to have been in her 20s, knocked on the door of a house in St Helens on Monday night, begging for help, Merseyside Police said.

Paramedics were called to the Rainford area and took the woman, who was suffering from serious burns, to hospital. She later died.

It is thought the woman may have been set alight using an accelerant.

A man has been arrested on suspicion of the murder of a young woman who was burned alive in Merseyside.

The victim managed to stagger 150 yards with horrific burn injuries from head to foot to raise the alarm after the attack in St Helens on Monday.

Although she has yet to be formally identified officers have a number of positive leads, a spokeswoman said.

The 26-year-old man was arrested in the Croxteth area of Liverpool on Tuesday night and is due to be questioned.

A 26-year-old man has been charged with the murder of a woman who was burned alive in Merseyside.

Monika Szmecht, 20, of Norris Green, Liverpool, suffered horrific burn injuries from head to foot in the attack in St Helens on Monday.

She managed to stagger to a nearby cottage for help but collapsed and died in hospital a short time later.

On Friday, Anthony Clarke, 26, of Halsey Crescent, West Derby, with the murder of Ms Szmecht.

Mr Clarke is due to appear before magistrates in St Helens on Friday afternoon.