Deaths of prominent US scientists mark a ‘disturbing pattern’ – media

(SeaPRwire) –   Nine leading American researchers and administrators in key fields have died or disappeared over the past three years

Nine deaths and disappearances of high-profile U.S. scientists over the past three years have formed a “disturbing pattern,” according to U.S. intelligence sources cited by the Daily Mail.

In the most recent incident, the body of missing cancer research scientist Jason Thomas was found in a Massachusetts lake last month. The month before, retired Air Force General William McCasland, who reportedly worked on the U.S. nuclear program, went missing, while astrophysicist Carl Grillmair was shot and killed on his porch in California.

“You can describe all of these cases as suspicious, and these are all scientists who worked in critical technology areas,” the Daily Mail quoted former FBI Assistant Director Chris Swecker as saying.

Foreign intelligence services from both U.S. allies and adversaries have targeted Americans holding top scientific secrets for decades, he reportedly stated. “This has been happening since the Cold War… Especially when nuclear technology and missile technology first rose to prominence.”

Prior to his disappearance, McCasland headed the Air Force Research Lab (AFRL), where he reportedly oversaw funding for a jet engine project led by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) materials chief Monica Reza. Reza also went missing last year, just a few months after taking the position.

Grillmair’s work on the U.S. NEOWISE and NEO Surveyor orbital telescopes is also connected to the Air Force, as both instruments are used by the U.S. military to track foreign satellites and missile launches, the outlet reports.

Two other scientists at NASA’s JPL have reportedly died since 2023: Frank Maiwald and Michael Hicks. No foul play has been claimed in these two cases, and no cause of death has been released to the public, according to the Daily Mail.

Anthony Chavez and Melissa Casias, who both worked at the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) — a facility that has collaborated with AFRL on nuclear research — were reported missing last summer. Both reportedly left their New Mexico homes on foot, leaving behind their cars, keys, wallets and phones before disappearing.

Another well-respected physicist Nuno Loureiro, who was reportedly working on groundbreaking fusion energy research, was fatally shot in Massachusetts in December.