Criminology Podcast Episode 407

Title: Missing and Murdered Scientists
Date: April 26, 2026
Hosts: Mike Ferguson & Mike Morford

Episode Overview

This episode explores the recent wave of deaths and disappearances involving high-profile American scientists and affiliated personnel between 2022 and 2026. The hosts, Mike Ferguson and Mike Morford, investigate whether these incidents—11 in total—are rooted in coincidence, suicide, natural causes, or point to a broader, potentially sinister conspiracy. With high-level government attention now focused on these cases, including FBI investigations, the episode examines both the facts and the speculation, dissecting each case for patterns, motives, and peculiarities.

1. Introduction and Episode Framing

• The episode opens with the hosts reflecting on the uncanny nature of the cases:

  "Every once in a while we cover one that seems like a plot from a conspiracy movie... the details are so strange and so unusual that they don't even really seem real."
  (Mike Morford, 02:26)

• The hosts reference rising governmental and public interest:

  • White House press secretary confirms federal agencies are involved.
  • President Trump calls recent incidents "pretty serious stuff."

2. Key Recent Cases (2025–2026)

Carl Grillmayr (California — Murdered, 02/16/2026)

• Background: 67-year-old astrophysicist, Caltech; known for finding signs of water on another planet.
• Circumstances: Found shot dead on his porch in a remote desert area; no evidence of burglary.
  • Arrested suspect (Freddy Snyder) had a history of trespassing on Grillmayr's property but clear motive remains uncertain.
• Quote:

  "It was as if someone had lured him outside just to kill him. But why?"
  (Mike Ferguson, 03:46)

Maj. Gen. William Neil McCasland (New Mexico — Missing, 02/27/2026)

• Background: Former head of the Air Force Research Laboratory; once linked to Wright Patterson AFB.
• Circumstances: Disappeared abruptly, left behind personal effects. Search complicated by geography.
• Conspiracy Context: Disappearance occurred days after Trump promised release of UFO/alien files; fueling rumors McCasland had sensitive information.
• Family Response:

  "Neil does not have any special knowledge about the ET bodies and debris from the Roswell crash... maybe aliens beamed him up to the mothership."
  (Facebook post by wife Susan, cited 09:34–10:40)

• Health Issues: McCasland had cognitive decline and depression, raising possibility of suicide.

Jason Thomas (Massachusetts — Drowned/Suspected Suicide, Body Found 03/2026)

• Background: Biologist, director at Novartis, focused on cancer treatments.
• Circumstances: Missing since Dec 2025, body recovered from frozen lake; grieving deaths of both parents (which he witnessed).
• Quote:

  “He was facing his first Christmas without either of his parents, probably replaying both deaths over and over in his mind…”
  (Mike Morford, 14:33)

• Ruling: No disclosed cause, but signs suggest suicide.

3. Earlier Cases (2022–2025)

Amy Eskridge (Alabama — Suicide, 06/11/2022)

• Background: Anti-gravity scientist, public about fears for safety; claimed harassment.
• Context:

  “I'm scared, I'm tired. I need to disclose soon, man... it's escalating.”
  (Amy Eskridge, quoted 22:11)

• Family’s View: Her father (NASA engineer) dismisses foul play.

Michael David Hicks (California — Natural Causes, 07/30/2023)

• Background: NASA Jet Propulsion Lab astronomer; asteroid research/DART mission.
• Context: Died of arteriosclerotic cardiovascular disease.

Frank Maywald (California — Unknown, 07/04/2024)

• Background: NASA JPL tech for 25 years; developed planet-life scanning tech.
• Circumstances: Cause not released, no autopsy, fueling speculation.

Anthony Chavez (New Mexico — Missing, 05/08/2025)

• Background: Los Alamos National Lab retiree; disappears without trace, no evidence.
• Comment: His disappearance marks start of a quickening in cases.

Monica Jacinto Reza (California/New Mexico — Missing, 06/22/2025)

• Background: Aerospace engineer, co-developed superalloy for rocket/military use; worked under Gen. McCasland.
• Disappearance: Vanished while hiking, 30ft behind friends; no trace, no sound/evidence.
• Quote:

  “She was with other people... really not that far behind. And then all of a sudden just disappears. And they couldn't find her. Nobody's found her. That does seem pretty strange.”
  (Mike Ferguson, 30:03)

Melissa Cassias (New Mexico — Missing, 06/26/2025)

• Background: Admin assistant at Los Alamos; high security clearance.
• Disappearance: Left work under odd pretense, returned home, later seen walking highway with backpack; phones wiped.
• Family Split: Husband/daughter believe stress drove her to leave; mother/sister suspect foul play.
• Quote:

  “There's a lot crumbling down on her that we didn't know about.”
  (Daughter Sierra, 35:33)

Stephen Garcia (New Mexico — Missing, 08/28/2025)

• Background: National security contractor with clearance.
• Circumstances: Last seen on surveillance walking away from car, armed. No other evidence.

Nuno Lourero (Massachusetts — Murdered, 12/15–16/2025)

• Background: MIT Plasma Science and Fusion director; working on breakthrough nuclear fusion.
• Incident: Victim of targeted attack linked to Brown University mass shooting by Claudio Valente (former physics class rival).
• Quote:

  "Valente... plotted to take his revenge and he did. And after that, you know, he took his own life. So I don't know that there's really that much of a conspiracy angle here to this one."
  (Mike Morford, 43:39)

4. The Hosts' Analysis & Public Response

Pattern Recognition vs. Coincidence

• Multiple cases contain elements pointing to suicide, depression or health decline (McCasland, Thomas, Eskridge).
• In certain cases, workplace violence or pre-existing animosity explain the death (Lourero).
• Several cases have insufficient information or strange circumstances (Reza, Cassias, Garcia, Grillmayr).

• Hosts acknowledge potential for "pattern bias":

  > “If you picked any profession, you could probably find... three people who either went missing or died under a somewhat mysterious circumstance in a short period of time."  
  (Mike Ferguson, 16:37)
  

Why Such Attention?

• Security clearances, government work, and proximity to classified projects heighten suspicion.

  > “These people… were in the public eye. They had security clearances. So them going missing or dying mysteriously, maybe that just registers a little bit more as mysterious or suspicious...”  
  (Mike Ferguson, 55:50)
  

Government Response

• Notable for official engagement:

  • FBI actively reviewing possible connections.
  • House Oversight Committee Chair:

    "Once you see the facts, it would suggest that something sinister could be happening and it would be a national security concern."
    (James Comer, 48:40)

• Public trust in authorities is fragile, fueling alternative explanations:

  > “The general erosion of trust in government... makes coordination of these events feel plausible. The anxiety over America's ability to defend its safety and status in the world supercharges it.”  
  (Mike Morford, paraphrasing Newsweek, 52:29)
  

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On UFO speculation:

  “Maybe the best hypothesis is that aliens beamed him up to the mothership.”
  (Susan McCasland, Facebook post, 09:34-10:40)

• On government secrecy:

  "If these 11 people were silenced, maybe it's not about what they were working on and maybe more about what they knew or what they had seen."
  (Mike Morford, 50:17)

• On the reality of patterns:

  “You can take pretty much any subject and create a pattern for it if you look hard enough.”
  (Barry Roth, National UFO Historical Records Center, 52:29)

The Value of Skepticism & Caution

• Some disappearances may be voluntary ("into hiding") or due to mental health crises rather than foul play.
• Public, family, and officials are split in interpreting evidence.
• Hosts emphasize: Some cases "defy a logical explanation," while others align with known tragic outcomes.

5. Timeline of Cases (Timestamps & Names)

| Timestamp | Name | Type | Field / Agency | Notable Circumstances | |-----------|---------------------------|--------------|-----------------------------|-----------------------------------| | 03:46 | Carl Grillmayr | Murdered | Caltech / NASA | Shot on porch, remote desert | | 05:43 | Maj. Gen. McCasland | Missing | Air Force, Roswell | Disappeared, health issues, UFO links | | 13:37 | Jason Thomas | Drowned | Novartis, Biology | Parental loss, likely suicide | | 21:28 | Amy Eskridge | Suicide | Exotic Science, Propulsion | Public fears of targeted harm | | 24:12 | Michael D. Hicks | Natural | NASA JPL, Astrophysics | Heart disease | | 25:46 | Frank Maywald | Unknown | NASA JPL | No cause, no autopsy | | 26:41 | Anthony Chavez | Missing | Los Alamos | No clues, retired | | 27:50 | Monica Reza | Missing | Aerojet Rocketdyne / JPL | Trail hiking, vanished instantly | | 31:22 | Melissa Cassias | Missing | Los Alamos (admin) | Odd behavior, wiped electronics | | 39:11 | Stephen Garcia | Missing | Kansas City NatSec campus | Walked away armed | | 40:57 | Nuno Lourero | Murdered | MIT, Fusion Science | Targeted by peer in mass shooting|

6. Conclusion & Reflection

• While threads of conspiracy are tantalizing, many cases have plausible, non-nefarious explanations.
• The theme underlying the episode: pattern recognition can sometimes oversimplify or sensationalize tragic but unrelated events.
• An official investigation is underway, and listeners are urged to await facts while remaining open to a range of explanations.
• Final thoughts focus on the peculiar weight these cases bear, given the credentials and clearances of the missing and deceased.

Closing Quote

“There definitely is some strange things surrounding some of these cases, but at the same time, some of them appear more likely to be cases of suicide. And, and I hate to say that, but that's what they appear to be on the surface to me." (Mike Morford, 56:22)

For further resources or to share information, visit criminologypodcast.com or contact authorities with tips on any cases discussed.