A cluster of disappearances and deaths involving at least 10 scientists, researchers and staffers connected to U.S. nuclear and aerospace work has triggered a formal House investigation, with lawmakers seeking urgent answers from top federal officials about what may be happening.
The cases stretch back to 2023 and span three states. Four deaths or disappearances occurred in California, four in New Mexico, and two in Massachusetts. House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer and Rep. Eric Burlison sent letters to FBI Director Kash Patel, NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman, Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth demanding briefings and details on security protocols by April 27.
The investigation was prompted by what the committee described as "unconfirmed public reporting" on the cases, including the recent disappearance of retired Air Force Maj. Gen. William Neil McCasland. McCasland, who conducted aerospace research throughout his military career before retiring 13 years ago, vanished from his Albuquerque home in February. He left with his wallet and a handgun but without his phone, prescription glasses or wearable devices. Authorities said he cited "mental fog" when departing from several research groups.
At NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California, three individuals connected to the center have died or vanished. Michael Hicks died in 2023, Frank Maiwald in 2024, and Monica Reza went missing in June 2025. None worked on the same projects. Caltech astrophysicist Carl Grillmair, who had ties to the JPL, died in February 2025. Reza and McCasland both worked at Kirtland Air Force Base in the early 2000s but no evidence suggests they collaborated.
In New Mexico, three people vanished within four months in 2025. Anthony Chavez and Melissa Casias both worked at Los Alamos National Laboratory. Steven Garcia worked at the New Mexico division of the Kansas City National Security Campus. Notably, none of their positions involved scientific research. Garcia, like McCasland, left his home carrying a gun.
The Massachusetts cases include MIT professor Nuno Loureiro, killed outside his Brookline home in December 2025, and pharmaceutical scientist Jason Thomas, who disappeared that same month before his body was found in March 2026.
Foul play remains unclear across many cases. Loureiro's alleged killer, Claudio Valente, knew him through graduation from the same Portuguese university and harbored decades-old grudges, according to authorities. The suspect in Grillmair's death was a neighbor with a history of erratic behavior and prior trespassing incidents. Thomas was grieving recent deaths of his parents when he disappeared, his wife told investigators. Hicks' daughter told CNN her father had medical problems unrelated to his work. No public information exists about Maiwald's cause of death.
Comer told NewsNation the cases could be interconnected, mentioning China, Iran, Russia and North Korea as possibilities. "But there are a lot of Eastern European countries and other countries that could be involved as well, or it could be a coincidence," he said, signaling uncertainty about whether any genuine pattern exists.
Author James Rodriguez: "Congressional skepticism is warranted here, but the sheer number of names tied to sensitive programs dying or vanishing in such a short window demands real answers, not speculation."
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