WireApril 19, 2026 at 6:02 PM
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The Department of Energy has launched a formal investigation into the unexplained disappearances and deaths of several top scientists, many of whom were involved in critical nuclear security and aerospace research. Energy Secretary Chris Wright confirmed the probe during an interview on Fox News Sunday, stating that the inquiry spans multiple government branches due to the sensitive nature of the cases.
'A lot of the nuclear security scientists are in DOE,' Wright said. 'So yes, of course we are looking into this.' When pressed on findings, Wright noted, 'Too early to say about that. We haven’t found anything alarming yet.'
President Donald Trump addressed the issue last week, expressing hope that the cases were coincidental. 'I hope it’s random, but we’re going to know in the next week and a half,' Trump told reporters on the White House South Lawn. 'Some of them were very important people, and we’re going to look at it.'
The trend began years ago, but concerns escalated after retired Air Force Maj. Gen. William McCasland disappeared from his New Mexico home in February. McCasland, former commander of the Air Force Research Laboratory, is among several individuals linked to Los Alamos National Laboratory and the National Nuclear Security Administration who have gone missing or died under mysterious circumstances.
'They just literally disappeared, left all of their devices at home,' said Rep. Eric Burlison, R-Mo. 'This is not normal.'
Other cases include the deaths of MIT physicist Nuno Loureiro and Caltech astrophysicist Carl Grillmair, as well as the discovery of deceased Novartis scientist Jason Thomas and NASA Jet Propulsion Lab engineer Frank Maiwald. The federal probe seeks to determine whether these incidents are isolated or part of a broader pattern threatening national security.