The authorities have spoken out after fears of a new serial killer have surfaced after eight people have been found dead in New England.
The latest grim discovery came Tuesday afternoon when Springfield Police responded to reports of an unresponsive person near the 1500 block of Hall of Fame Avenue.
“The SPD Homicide Unit under the direction Captain Trent Duda is conducting an unattended death investigation in conjunction with the @HampdenDA Murder Unit, pending an autopsy by the Medical Examiner,” said Springfield Police Department spokesperson Ryan Walsh, per Fox News Digital.
The woman was pronounced dead shortly after first responders arrived. The circumstances of her death remain unknown, but the timing and location have only added fuel to widespread speculation.
This is the eighth body found in New England since early March.
On March 6, 35-year-old Paige Fannon was discovered in the fast-moving Norwalk River in Connecticut, just one day after heavy rainfall, per the New York Post.
A few weeks later, the remains of 59-year-old mother-of-two Denise Leary were recovered. On March 25, Michele Romano, 56, was found in a wooded area of Foster, Rhode Island.
Police in Groton, Connecticut, also uncovered female remains on March 19 believed to belong to a woman aged 40 to 60 with traits consistent with Turner syndrome.
April brought more horror: on April 9, possible human remains were discovered in Killingly, Connecticut.
On April 10, decomposed remains were found by firefighters in Framingham, Massachusetts. Then two male bodies were discovered near a Walmart in Salem on Wednesday, per the Daily Mail.
The disquieting frequency of these findings has triggered a digital frenzy. A Facebook group originally titled “New England Serial Killer” surged in popularity, gaining over 15,000 new members this month alone, now totaling 65,300.
But authorities are urging caution.
Walsh emphasized: “Internet rumors are just that.”
He told Fox News Digital that the woman’s cause of death will be determined by a medical examiner.
“There is no information at this time suggesting any connection to similar remains discoveries, and there is also no known threat to the public at this time,” Connecticut State Police added.
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The family of Michele Romano has also pushed back on the narrative. “Michele’s passing is in no way related to any type of serial killer,” they said.
“We have complete faith in the Rhode Island State Police and our Private Investigator that the person responsible will be brought to justice sooner rather than later.”
Experts, too, are treading carefully. Peter Valentin, chair of the Forensic Science Department at the University of New Haven’s Henry C. Lee College of Criminal Justice and Forensic Sciences, explained that the condition in which the Springfield woman was found suggests a recent death: “If someone is in full rigor mortis, there is no need to try to find a pulse because the presence of rigor mortis means they are unequivocally dead. So this is a very recent death, unlike the others that are being attributed to the [New England serial killer].”
Valentin added: “I am curious about what was recovered around the body. There might have been paraphernalia suggestive of activity that is deemphasizing homicide (perhaps incorrectly) to the investigators because that article is quite tepid.
"It is filled with very cautious language (surely taken right from police press releases), which might be intentional to not feed into what is now turning into intense scrutiny over every suspicious death in New England.”
The eerie pattern - multiple female victims, spread across picturesque towns and cities, in a short time frame - has captivated the public imagination.
New Haven police officer Christian Bruckhart acknowledged this psychological pull.
“There’s certain things that have a mystique about them, and I think serial killers are one... A serial killer is this almost mythical figure in the zeitgeist — I mean, how many Hannibal Lecter movies have been done?”
Speaking specifically about the case of Denise Leary, he noted: “There’s no indication there was any homicide.”
He continued: “They’re out there, we know that they exist. But I can only speak to my department’s investigation, in the missing person case, that there’s no indication there was any homicide.”
The key issue now is timing.
Valentin reminded readers that although the remains were discovered within a few weeks of each other, “that does not indicate the victims died around the same time.”
Still, with each new discovery, fear grows - and so does speculation. While officials have yet to confirm any links, the public is left wondering if coincidence can truly explain eight bodies across three states in under two months.