Mystery clouds deaths, disappearances of scientists with UFO research ties: timeline

A series of suspicious deaths and disappearances of high-level scientists across the country over the past several years is reaching a fever pitch and catching the attention of online sleuths all the way to the White House.

Since 2023, at least eight people, mostly involved in researching space and nuclear science, have died or vanished, some under murky circumstances. Some have had connections to UFO research.

Asked Wednesday by Fox News' Peter Doocy about the trend, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the Trump administration will likely look into the matter.

"I haven’t spoken to our relevant agencies about it. I will certainly do that, and we’ll get you an answer," Leavitt said. "If true, of course, that’s definitely something I think this government and its administration would deem worth looking into. So let me do that for you."

Hicks was a scientist working at NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory from 1998 to 2022, according to the Daily Mail. He worked on the space program's Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) project, which focused on understanding the physical properties of asteroids and comets, and whether they could be re-directed in outer space.

Maiwald also worked in the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. He designed a critical instrument for a project called Surface Biology and Geology (SBG) – Visible to Shortwave Infrared (VSWIR), a future NASA mission to launch a satellite into space and map the "living color" of the Earth in far greater detail than can be observed by the human eye, according to his obituary.

Just over a year before he died, he was working on a program to help astronauts on space missions identify signs of life on other planets, including Jupiter's moon, Europa, Saturn’s moon, Enceladus, or the dwarf planet Ceres, the Daily Mail reported.

Monica Reza went missing while hiking in Mount Waterman in the Angeles National Forest in California. A missing person's flyer from the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Office said there was concern for Reza's well-being, and asked tipsters to call 818-248-3464.

Reza also worked for NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory as an aerospace engineer, reportedly overseeing the lab's Materials Processing Group, which "focuses on developing new materials and advanced manufacturing technologies for spacecraft, specializing in bulk metallic glass alloys and metal additive manufacturing," according to NASA.

Casias worked as an administrative assistant at Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico, which reportedly developed nuclear weapons for the Manhattan Project.

On the day she disappeared, she dropped off lunch for her daughter and was never seen again.

Chavez also worked at Los Alamos National Laboratory until he retired in 2017, according to the Daily Mail. He was last seen leaving his house in Los Alamos on foot, with his car locked in his driveway. He did not bring his phone, wallet or keys on his walk.

Garcia went missing in Albuquerque after leaving his home on foot carrying only a handgun, according to NewsNation. He worked at the Kansas City National Security Campus, which develops most of the nonnuclear components that go into building nuclear weapons.

He had a top secret security clearance.

Grillmair was a renowned research scientist at Caltech’s Infrared Processing and Analysis Center, which partners with NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory providing "science operations, user support, archives and data services, and scientific vision to maximize discovery with observatories both in space and on the ground."

The Daily Mail reported that he was personally involved in space telescope projects with NASA.

He was shot and killed outside his home. A man named Freddy Snyder, 29, was charged with his murder.

McCasland was the former commander of the Air Force Research Laboratory, and had connections with the Los Alamos National Laboratory, like Casias and Garcia. He reportedly possessed top secret information on UFOs.

He, too, disappeared in New Mexico. He left his home with only a part of boots and a handgun, leaving his phone, keys and glasses, the Daily Mail reported.