Police in British Columbia have issued a warning to the public about a woman convicted of killing animals but one former Toronto officer says the case reminds him of another disturbing criminal case.

Former Toronto police investigator Ross McLean told CP24 Tuesday that there are similarities between the cases of 23-year-old Kayla Bourque and murder suspect Luka Rocco Magnotta.

Bourque pleaded guilty in 2012 to willfully killing animals, causing unnecessary pain and suffering to animals and possessing a weapon for a dangerous purpose.

The charges stem from the deaths of her family’s cat and dog.

Her recent release prompted a warning to the public issued by B.C. Corrections on Monday.

“You’re seeing similarities here between [Magnotta’s and Bourque’s] family background – it being broken, escalation to torturing and hurting animals and then the stated intent and the fantasizing about doing it to humans,” McLean told CP24 on Tuesday.

Magnotta, 30, is accused of first-degree murder in connection with the killing and dismemberment of Montreal university student Jun Lin, who police believe was killed on either May 24 or 25, 2012.

The 33-year-old’s torso was later found in a suitcase outside Magnotta’s apartment building, while his hands and feet were mailed to political offices and schools in Ottawa and B.C. His head was located in a Montreal park.

Magnotta was arrested in Berlin in July following an international manhunt.

Police believe that a video posted online shows the dismemberment of Lin.

Online videos allegedly showing the torture of animals have also been linked to Magnotta.

No charges against Magnotta have been proven in a court of law. He is currently in police custody awaiting trial.

Bourque, a former student at Simon Fraser University, was sentenced to eight months in jail. Police say she will now be living in the Metro Vancouver area, but did not elaborate with specifics.

She will be subject to more than 40 court-ordered restrictions, including bans on using social networking sites, owning weapons, associating with anyone under the age of 18 and a lifetime ban on owning animals.

She will also only be allowed to leave the house between the hours of 6 a.m. and 6 p.m.

Bourque is also barred from having intimate relationships without advising the other person of her criminal past and must take part in counseling sessions and psychiatric assessments.

“It appears from the orders that the police are really working to see that [Bourque] goes in and gets the counseling she requires,” McLean said. “Now whether she wants to take it, or it works, is another story."

Following a tip from a concerned friend last year, police conducted a search of Bourque’s residence room, where investigators seized a laptop, storage devices and a binder containing information on serial killers, as well as depictions of sexual homicide and animal torture.

Member of the public are being asked to contact police immediately if they see Bourque violating any of the conditions of her release.

She is described as five-foot-four, 130 pounds with a slender build, brown eyes and black hair.

McLean says he believes cases like Bourque’s will be more and more common.

“We’ve raised people in a time today where - between the Internet, online pornography, the ability to learn about gruesome items – the environment is there right for those people to come out,” he said.