12 Us Scientists Have Gone Missing Or Died. The Mystery Has Become The Talk - And Worry - Of Washington

“Something is up,” Florida Rep. Anna Paulina Luna warned her societal media followers connected X.

“Who killed nan scientists?” asked South Carolina Rep. Nancy Mace.

The Republicans are a increasing number of lawmakers sounding nan siren astir nan 12 U.S. scientists who person either died aliases vanished since 2022—and each of them appeared to person ties to atomic aliases abstraction programs and, successful immoderate cases, classified projects.

“If you are emotion uneasy astir nan magnitude of scientists that person gone missing, died, and caller suicides ref those scientists and others you are correct successful your intuition,” Luna’s station added.

Suspects person been identified successful a mates of nan cases, but nan enigma surrounding nan chartless has fueled conspiracy theories arsenic sleuths have tried to make connections betwixt them. Both Congress and nan FBI person launched investigations arsenic location is still small accusation released astir imaginable relationship of nan cases.

Lawmakers connected nan House Oversight Committee are now investigating 10 of nan cases, writing to nan FBI, Pentagon and Department of Energy this week to pass really “these deaths and disappearances whitethorn correspond a sedate threat to U.S. nationalist information and to U.S. unit pinch entree to technological secrets.”

“We cognize location are galore countries astir nan world that would emotion to person our knowledge and atomic capabilities,” House Oversight Committee president James Comer told Fox & Friends. “And these are nan group that were astatine nan forefront of it, and they’re either dormant aliases missing.”

The rumor mill went into overdrive Thursday pursuing nan death of famed UFO interrogator David Wilcock, who died by termination connected April 20, nan Office of nan Boulder County Coroner confirmed. Wilcock’s decease brings nan full number of mysterious cases to 12.

Police person ruled retired foul play successful immoderate of them, and NASA has said location is nary denotation of a information threat, while families person dismissed conspiracies astir their loved ones. President Donald Trump said that “hopefully” it is each conscionable a coincidence.”

The Independent delves into nan cases

3 missing aliases dormant California NASA researchers and a Caltech astrophysicist changeable connected his doorstep

Frank Maiwald, Michael Hicks and Monica Reza worked for NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, while astrophysicist Carl Grillmair worked for Caltech’s Infrared Processing and Analysis Center. All 4 were successful nan Pasadena area, conscionable extracurricular of Los Angeles; 3 of them are dormant and 1 is missing.

Hicks, whose specialism was comets and asteroids, worked arsenic a investigation intelligence astatine nan laboratory until 2022. He died July 30, 2023 and nan 59-year-old’s origin of decease was ne'er publically disclosed.

His girl Julia Hicks told CNN that her begetter had struggled pinch “known aesculapian issues” and said she did not understand nan relationship betwixt her dad’s decease and nan different missing scientists. She added that neither elected officials nor national agencies had contacted her astir her father’s decease arsenic of Tuesday.

The origin of decease of Maiwald, a 61-year-old German-born interrogator astatine nan Pasadena-based lab, was besides ne'er disclosed. He died July 4, 2024.

Reza, 60, a celebrated worldly scientist, vanished connected June 22, 2025, aft going for a hike successful nan Angeles National Forest. She was nan head of nan NASA lab’s Materials Processing Group, and during nan 90s, co-invented a metallic utilized successful rocket engines. In nan missive to nan FBI, nan House Overnight committee cited a study that linked her activity to different missing scientist—retired Air Force General William McCasland—who vanished from his location successful Albuquerque, New Mexico, successful February.

“Reports person moreover alleged a nonstop nexus betwixt Ms. Reza and General McCasland characterizing them arsenic having a ‘close master connection’ done an Air Force-funded investigation programme successful nan early 2000s pertaining to ‘advanced materials needed for reusable abstraction vehicles and weapons,’” GOP committee president Comer and Rep. Eric Burlison wrote successful nan missive to FBI Director Kash Patel.

On February 16, renowned astrophysicist and astronomer Grillmair, 67, was changeable and killed connected his doorstep successful nan mini agrarian municipality of Llano. One of nan scientist’s notable discoveries see discovering h2o connected a distant planet.

Freddy Snyder, 29, was charged pinch Grillmair’s murder, and was not believed to cognize his victim, Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Office said.

4 missing New Mexico scientists, including retired Air Force wide who worked astatine Roswell tract

Retired Air Force General William “Neil” McCasland went for a hike connected February 27 and ne'er came back.

McCasland is 1 of 4 scientists who vanished from New Mexico successful nan past year.

The 68-year-old lived successful nan Albuquerque foothills and near location pinch a .38-caliber revolver successful a leather holster, his hiking boots and a wallet, leaving his telephone and glasses behind.

Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office ruled retired foul play, but conspiracy theories person exploded astir McCasland’s case because he antecedently led nan Air Force Research Laboratory astatine Wright-Patterson Air Force Base successful Greene County, Ohio—a tract which conspiracy theorists person agelong linked to nan 1947 Roswell alien clang landing tale.

His wife, Susan McCasland Wilkerson, said that relationship has caused misinformation to dispersed and denied that he had classified aliases master knowledge astir extraterrestrials aliases UFO programs. “Neil does not person immoderate typical knowledge astir nan ET bodies and debris from nan Roswell clang stored astatine Wright-Patt,” she wrote successful a Facebook post past month.

New Mexico scientists Melissa Casias and Anthony Chavez, who some worked astatine nan Los Alamos National Laboratory, are still missing. Los Alamos was nan tract of nan U.S. government’s top-secret Manhattan Project successful World War II to make a atomic limb earlier nan Nazis.

Casias vanished June 26, 2025, from her hometown of Ranchos de Taos, astir 65 miles from Santa Fe. The 53-year-old had dropped her hubby disconnected astatine nan laboratory that morning, wherever he besides works, earlier she returned location to activity remotely aft forgetting her worker badge, according to Taos News. When her girl returned location that day, her mother’s car was location but she had vanished. Her phone, purse and wallet were astatine home. New Mexico State Police said location was nary suspected foul play.

Chavez, 79, has been missing since early May, 2025, pinch a friend calling his disappearance “extremely unusual.” Chavez retired from nan laboratory successful 2017, wherever he worked arsenic a foreman supervising building astatine nan site, according to CNN. A detective told nan web that location were nary indications of foul play, but besides nary signs that he was readying to leave.

“His car was locked and parked successful his driveway. His wallet, car keys and individual items were successful his home, truthful it appears that he near his location pinch nan volition of not being gone for much than a fewer minutes,” Carl Buckland, who described Chavez arsenic his “best friend,” wrote successful a Facebook station past year. “His disappearance is highly unusual.”

Elsewhere, Steven Garcia, who worked arsenic a authorities contractor astatine Kansas City National Security Campus successful Albuquerque, has been missing since August 28. He near location pinch conscionable a handgun, and without his keys aliases phone. His activity progressive nan accumulation of non-nuclear components for atomic weapons, and nan tract makes “an array of nationalist information products” for nan Department of Energy. Police told section media that location are nary caller developments successful nan case.

Murder of celebrated MIT atomic scientist, ‘genius’ researcher’s termination and nan decease of a pharmaceutical biologist

Three starring scientists died successful tragic and convulsive incidents successful nan past 3 years, though location is nary grounds linking them to immoderate of nan different cases.

The decease of a “genius” antigravity interrogator Amy Eskridge successful June 2022, was ruled a termination from a self-inflicted gunshot coiled by a coroner. A friend of nan 34-year-old scientist, Franc Milburn, told NewsNation that Eskridge, who lived successful Huntsville, Alabama, believed she was being targeted for her work.

Milburn claimed that Eskridge told him successful a matter message: “If you spot immoderate study that I killed myself, I astir decidedly did not. If you spot immoderate study that I overdosed myself, I astir decidedly did not. If you spot immoderate study that I killed anyone else, I astir decidedly did not.”

Her father, Richard Eskridge, a erstwhile NASA employee, dismissed nan conspiracy theories astir his daughter’s death. “Scientists dice also, conscionable for illustration different people,” he told NewsNation.

In December, Nuno F.G. Loureiro, a 47-year-old physicist and fusion intelligence and MIT professor, was fatally changeable astatine his flat successful Brookline, Massachusetts.

His slayer was later identified arsenic Claudio Manuel Neves Valente, who was besides recovered responsible for nan Brown University wide shooting, which took spot 2 days earlier Loureiro’s murder. Valente and Loureiro attended nan aforesaid assemblage programme successful Portugal betwixt 1995 and 2000. Valente was recovered dormant successful a New Hampshire retention installation connected December 19.

His motive for sidesplitting Loureiro was ne'er established.

The joined begetter led MIT’s Plasma Science and Fusion Center. A constabulary study released successful February cited a workfellow who told investigators that Loureiro had contacts astatine nan Department of Energy. “She wasn't alert if Loureiro had a Top Secret Clearance aliases if he was doing immoderate activity pinch nan Department of Defense,” nan study said, according to CBS News.

In March, nan assemblage of Jason Thomas, a biologist for pharmaceutical institution Novartis, was pulled from a reservoir successful Massachusetts. Thomas had been missing for 3 months earlier he was recovered successful Lake Quannapowitt by police, and his woman said he had been struggling to header pinch nan caller deaths of his parents.

Thomas was not mentioned by sanction successful nan lawmakers’ missive to nan FBI, but they did mention a “pharmaceutical researcher.”

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