Three arrested over 'murder' of Australian surfers in Mexico

Three men have been detained in connection with the murder of two Australian surfers believed dead after charred remains were discovered in a burnt-out camper van in Mexico.

Childhood friends Adam Coleman and Dean Lucas, both 33, went missing last month while "chasing the perfect waves" in the notorious drug trafficking region of Sinaloa.

The Chevy van they were travelling in was found in the northwestern state of Sinaloa last month with two charred corpses inside.

Authorities are still checking the identity of the victims, but suspect they were the missing men, Lucas and British-born Coleman.

The state prosecutor's office in Sinaloa said it had arrested three men over their disappearance.

Two other suspects, including one it believes shot the pair dead and then burnt their remains along with the van, are still at large.