A renowned author and criminology professor said that two separate incidents of burnt bodies found within a 24-hour span are not likely mere coincidence.

James Alan Fox, a professor of Criminology, Law, and Public Policy at Northeastern University, told Metro there are too many similarities in the instances to ignore the question of whether here is a connection.

“There are coincidences, but burned bodies are not the most common occurrence and the fact that they were found in such close time period is bizarre to say the least,” Fox said. “It’s early in these investigations, but they are strange and seemingly similar.”

A woman’s body was set ablaze in Bridgewater next to railroad tracks in a wooded area on Tuesday evening. The next night, a body was found in a torched car on a remote dirt road in Worcester.

“This doesn’t seem to be by chance,” Fox said. “Typically, the victim is already dead. You could potentially kill someone by burning them, but you have to get close and they may try to fight back and/or thrash about.”