Two men were arrested on suspicion of murder in connection with a man’s body that was found in the back seat of a charred sedan in Chatsworth in February, police said Wednesday.

Frank Salazar, 44, of Oak Park and Rodolfo Navarro, 23, of Sylmar were taken into custody Tuesday and were being held at Van Nuys jail in lieu of at least $2 million, Detective Dave Peteque of the Los Angeles Police Department’s Operations-Valley Bureau Homicide Unit said. The pair were set to be arraigned in court Thursday.

The victim was identified as Christopher Alan Nicols, 48, with an unknown city of residence, said Ed Winter of the Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner-Coroner.

Detectives learned that Nicols worked part-time at a warehouse in Van Nuys. A search warrant revealed the warehouse was an illegal marijuana grow, where authorities recovered more than $2.3 million worth of illegal marijuana, Peteque said.

“The investigation revealed that Nicols got into a dispute with the business owner of the illegal marijuana grow,” Peteque said, and a physical altercation occurred.

Both suspects were wanted in connection with the murder and for transporting Nicols from Van Nuys to Chatsworth, where the vehicle was set on fire. Nicols died after he was hit in the head with an unknown object and the car was set on fire, Peteque explained.

The burned vehicle was reported at 1:16 a.m. Feb. 26, near the 11000 block of Lurline Avenue north of Nashville Street, authorities said.

Winter said there was no license plate on the vehicle, and the back bumper had been removed.

Nicols’ cause of death has been deferred, Winter explained, likely because of the toxicology tests and other factors such as the condition of the body.

Nicols did not have a permanent address, and it’s unclear if he was a transient, Winter explained.

But Peteque described Nicols as “basically homeless,” noting he was allowed to stay in a back room of the Van Nuys warehouse and acted like a security guard.

Navarro was arrested around noon Tuesday after a pursuit of less than 10 minutes that started in Granada Hills and ended in Sylmar.

“There was no use of force,” Peteque said, adding there had been a surveillance unit shadowing Navarro.

Salazar was followed from his residence in Oak Park to Woodland Hills and was arrested at 3 p.m. Tuesday, Peteque explained.

“He just pulled over,” Peteque said, adding Salazar was cooperative.

Authorities initially investigated the death as a homicide, and Peteque said at the time the sedan containing the body was “burned all the way to the metal frame.”

The spot where the charred car was found is near equestrian trails and other open lots south of the 118 Freeway. The private Sierra Canyon School is also in the area.

Staff writer Brenda Gazzar and City News Service contributed to this report.